…While outages typically stem from a software failure, hardware issue or cyber attack, Euronext cited a “middleware” issue for the crash that halted trading in Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, Lisbon and Dublin.

“To use an analogy, the pilot used to have a dashboard and a joystick that moved the rudder but now there is a middle bit where the joystick sends instructions into a computer before the rudder gets moved,” said Niki Beattie, founder at Market Structure Partners. “When middleware goes wrong it is like the joystick falling off.”
…

…

The outage was one of a few that’ve hit the financial services industry this year. The world’s third-largest stock exchange in Tokyo was taken down by a hardware failure on Oct. 1, hack attacks have hit New Zealand’s exchanges and a software glitch took down electronic trading in Germany this summer.

When tech problems plague these financial market platforms, what really happens on the inside? And how do officials ensure trade is smooth when it restarts? Niki Beattie, CEO of the consultancy Market Structure Partners, gave the BBC’s Victoria Craig the inside scoop on the global edition of “Marketplace Morning Report.”

…A European Commission study, managed by consultancy Market Structure Partners, was published in September and found that the greatest impediments to the development of a consolidated tape were:

• The need to consolidate underlying data which is residing across many competing commercial entities, some with disproportionate economic leverage and conflicts of interest.
• The lack of body to mandate conformance to a single set of technical operating standards for data generators and aggregators.
• The lack of a single body to enforce standards and penalise poor behaviour, particularly to resolve data issues in real time, due to national competent authorities being responsible for European enforcement.

The paper recommended that Europe drive progress forward by creating a single, exclusive, consolidated tape provider to be run as an industry utility, governed by a broad set of data stakeholders and empowered by ESMA, to set and enforce market-wide standards and pricing of consolidated data. …

Niki Beattie, founder and CEO, Market Structure Partners
The former head of Emea market structure at Merrill Lynch, Beattie has broad influence across the trading and market infrastructure sector through the consultancy she set up 12 years ago and also a variety of board and advisory roles. Her views are frequently sought by the media and she has recently commented on Covid-19, Brexit and exchange consolidation. Beattie holds non-executive chair roles at both Aquis Exchange and XTX Markets. She is a director on the FICC Markets Standards Board and a member of Esma’s Secondary Markets Standing Committee. FN100W entries: 2007, 2010, 2012 -14, 2018

Scott Duxbury, co-founder of Nucleus 195 talks with with Niki Beattie, founder of Market Structure Partners to discuss her recent report on the EU consolidated tape report. Watch the full video by clicking the link below.

[English translation] The European stock and bond markets do not of their own accord with a central collection system for transaction data, so the European Union must take action itself. Such a so-called consolidated tape should have been around for a long time, and longer linger is not an option – even if laws and regulations are not yet completely in order. In case of further delay, cancellation threatens.

That is the firm conclusion of a report published Wednesday that the British consultancy Market Structure Partners (MSP) wrote on behalf of the European Commission. The authors argue for a central utility entity that derives its authority from the European market watchdog ESMA.

According to MSP, membership should be mandatory for market parties, and non-cooperation should be subject to fines. The forthcoming Brexit only reinforces the need for data consolidation, according to the consultancy….

…Aquis noted that Ms Somers led the transformation of the Irish Stock Exchange from a “relatively small domestic equity exchange to a highly profitable plc with global specialisms”.

Aquis chairperson Niki Beattie welcomed Ms Somers’ appointment.

“Her experience will be extremely valuable to Aquis as we continue our journey to become the leading exchange services group in Europe,” she said.

Ms Somers is also a non-executive director of Irish mining firm Kenmare Resources, and is a non-executive director and audit committee member for Blackrock iShares.

Aquis Exchange, a UK-based share trading platform for European shares, has appointed former Dublin stock market chief Deirdre Somers to its board, adding to her non-executive roles since stepping down from the Irish exchange two years ago.

…

“Deirdre is a true expert in public market structure, regulation and products, with a particular strength in European markets,” said Niki Beattie, chair of Aquis. “Her experience will be extremely valuable to Aquis as we continue on our journey to become the leading exchange services group in Europe.”

…

… Somers has a deep knowledge of EU market structure and market regulation. She was President of the Federation of European Securities Exchanges (FESE) between 2015 and 2018 and she is also a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland.

Commenting on the appointment, Niki Beattie, Chair of Aquis, says: “Deirdre is a true expert in public market structure, regulation and products, with a particular strength in European markets. Her experience will be extremely valuable to Aquis as we continue on our journey to become the leading exchange services group in Europe. It is a testament to the growing profile of Aquis that we have been able to attract a candidate of such quality to our Board.” …

…Ms Somers has vast understanding of EU market structure and market regulation. She was President of the Federation of European Securities Exchanges (FESE) between 2015 and 2018 and she is also a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland.

Commenting on the appointment, Niki Beattie, Chair of Aquis, said:

“Deirdre is a true expert in public market structure, regulation and products, with a particular strength in European markets. Her experience will be extremely valuable to Aquis as we continue on our journey to become the leading exchange services group in Europe. It is a testament to the growing profile of Aquis that we have been able to attract a candidate of such quality to our Board.”…