Capital markets are entering a decisive phase of transformation. From compressed settlement cycles and treasury market reforms to the institutional adoption of digital assets, firms across the financial ecosystem are reassessing how technology underpins their operations. 

By Danny Green, Broadridge

At Broadridge, we see three forces driving this rapid evolution: increased regulatory momentum, the maturation of digital asset infrastructure, and the acceleration of driven automation. Each, in its own way, is reshaping the global post-trade landscape and redefining what “efficiency” means for the industry. 

Rethinking post-trade operations 

The modernisation of post-trade infrastructure has become a strategic imperative. Regulatory initiatives such as T+1 settlement in North America and the forthcoming changes across Europe are prompting firms to reexamine their entire post-trade lifecycle. 

This is not simply an exercise in moving faster. A one-day settlement cycle compels the industry to operate in true real time, with streamlined data flows, coherent reconciliations, and robust risk management. Firms are seeking to automate inventory management, enhance transparency, and eliminate friction across counterparties and asset classes. 

Broadridge’s platform-based architecture is already enabling many institutions to achieve these goals. By unifying data, APIs and workflows through a single digital model, clients can minimise settlement fails, accelerate reconciliations and realise material cost and time savings. Combined with advanced workflow automation and the integration of artificial intelligence, the shift to T+1 is driving measurable improvements in productivity and operational resilience. 

The digital asset revolution 

Digital assets have evolved from theory to practical reality. Tokenisation is no longer viewed as an experiment but as an operational tool delivering genuine efficiency and liquidity benefits. 

Broadridge’s distributed ledger-based solution, DLR, processes more than $300 billion in daily tokenised repo transactions, the world’s largest institutional scale tokenisation platform. Clients use it to mobilise high quality collateral in real time, expand funding capacity and increase transparency across global financing activities. 

The same underlying technology now supports a growing range of digital asset use cases. Tokenised deposits, stablecoins and native digital securities are enabling firms to issue and manage assets seamlessly, while retaining the governance and transparency of traditional markets. 

Broadridge’s modular digital capabilities including smart contract libraries, institutional wallet custody, and interoperability with networks such as Kinexys by J.P. Morgan and Fnality, allow institutions to integrate digital and traditional assets within a single operating environment. The result is a unified post-trade workflow that supports efficiency, scalability and regulatory compliance. 

Clearing the way: US Treasury reform

The industry’s transition towards mandatory central clearing in the US Treasury market is gathering speed. By 2026 all cash Treasury trades, and by 2027 all repo transactions, will need to be centrally cleared. 

These reforms promise greater transparency, reduced counterparty risk and enhanced market stability but they also introduce operational and liquidity challenges. Market participants must determine the right clearing model, reconcile margin implications and adapt systems well in advance of the deadlines. 

Broadridge is working closely with institutions to help them manage this transition efficiently. Leveraging our extensive post-trade and fixed income expertise, we enable clients to meet new requirements with minimal disruption and maximum agility. 

T+1 readiness: global momentum, local nuance 

The global shift to T+1 is extending beyond North America, with Europe scheduled for implementation in October 2027 and other markets expected to follow. This transition, spanning multiple currencies, settlement regimes and infrastructures, will be one of the most complex modernisation programmes the industry has ever undertaken. 

The key to success lies in collaboration. Custodians, brokers, asset managers and market utilities all need to align on operational readiness, testing frameworks and data integrity. Beyond compliance, the move to T+1 offers an opportunity to reengineer processes, increase automation and strengthen risk control and resilience across the trade lifecycle. 

Drawing on extensive experience from the North American transition, Broadridge is supporting clients as they modernise back-office environments, deploy real-time data solutions, and integrate intelligent workflow tools that support continuous settlement. 

Preparing asset servicing for the next era

T+1 does not only affect trading and settlement. Corporate actions and income processing teams will also face increased complexity as timelines compress, and global volumes grow. 

Shorter cycles mean tighter deadlines for event capture, instruction processing and claims management. Coupled with regional variations, documentation requirements and short-fused events, firms will need to rely on real-time data, automated workflows and flexible technology to maintain accuracy and client service. 

As digital assets become a greater part of the investment landscape, asset servicing in this area introduces additional tax withholding and reporting obligations and demands integration with blockchain engines to support payments and transformations.

For many institutions, building end-to-end visibility through an integrated corporate actions platform will be essential to sustaining efficiency and control as event complexity increases. 

A more connected future 

What unites these developments is a shift towards a real-time, data-driven market infrastructure. The firms that succeed will be those that view technology not just as an enabler of compliance, but as a catalyst for growth and innovation. 

Broadridge continues to invest heavily in AI, data unification and distributed ledger technology so that clients can meet new regulatory demands, reduce risk and unlock operational efficiency. As the industry moves towards an increasingly digitised, always-on capital markets environment, we remain focused on helping institutions bridge today’s challenges with tomorrow’s opportunities. 

Danny Green is Head of International Post-Trade at Broadridge.

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