A post-trade trial between Credit Suisse and Nomura indicates the future for equities clearing, if blockchain technology can be scaled to meet the needs of a global equities market. Gillian Tett from the FT explains more.

Gillian Tett writing in the FT covers an even which shows where the future of equity post-trade might go. Credit Suisse cut some US equities trades with the Nomura-owned broker Instinet, using blockchain. These were trial trades which were recording and settled using a private chain. Compared to a typical clearing process the post-trade settlement was completed in minutes, compared to the current T+2 cycle with DTCC. 

"Think of it, if you will, as a financial version of moving from the snail mail of post to zippy emails. Wall Street currently uses a third party, the DTCC, to transfer assets, net off balances and collect margin to protect against losses. But now Credit Suisse and Instinet have dealt directly with each other by recording the trades on a shared diital ledger, and much faster, too…"

Click here to read the full Financial Times article (possibly behind a pay wall)