I'm delighted to welcome you to our fourth and final issue of The Custodian for 2020. This issue focuses on the Digitalisation of Securities Services – a topic which was core to the agenda of two pre-eminent industry conferences held virtually this year – Sibos and The Network Forum Autumn Meeting in early November.
Digitalisation, innovation, smart finance, technology and innovation were common themes running through the conference agenda for both events. And for good reason too.
In this issue, we share key takeaways from our Securities Services virtual think tank, hosted in September, where we took a long hard look at the intermediation lag and how to reduce fails, operational risk and costs in the custody chain. Leading industry expert Julia Streets facilitated the discussion with participants which included representation from across both the buy and sell sides: a stock exchange, central securities depositary, custodians, broker-dealers, an insurance firm and an asset manager. The breadth of perspectives across the value chain made for a most engaging and holistic discussion; our article identifies some common pain points as well as actions to tackle them.
We turn the spotlight on how open banking and API could transform post-trade services, where robots might be best deployed in Securities Services, and how artificial intelligence could help us make meaningful use of the vast reams of ESG investing data available.
We also look at how digital assets are transforming Thailand’s capital markets. A forerunner in digital asset innovation, Thailand is one of the most proactive in establishing a digital asset infrastructure and regulatory framework.
Last but certainly not least, Ryan Cuthbertson, our head of Securities Services product management, rounds off this issue of The Custodian with his take on the latest trends, issues, challenges and potential solutions in digital asset servicing, and shares Standard Chartered’s plans for developing our digital asset servicing capabilities.
Do join me in congratulating Ryan for winning the ‘Digital Leadership Award’ in The Asset’s Triple A Sustainable Investing Awards for Institutional Investor, ETF and Asset Servicing Providers 2020!
As always, we hope you enjoy this issue of The Custodian and look forward to hearing your views and feedback. Wishing you a good end-of-year, and I look forward to connecting with you again in 2021, hopefully in person as well as in the virtual domain. In the meantime, do visit us on CCIB News and Views for more insights on the latest industry developments.
Being able to quickly adopt and implement digital solutions is what has allowed the industry and our respective organisations to be resilient, agile and adaptive enough to carry on operating during the most unexpected confluence of events this year. Digital has proven to be THE key enabler of business during this profound disruption.
Margaret Harwood-Jones Co-head, Financing and Securities Services Financial Markets
