The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) has introduced ComposerX, a comprehensive suite of platforms aimed at simplifying token creation and settlement, with the goal of accelerating digital asset adoption across the financial sector.

ComposerX provides an end-to-end framework for managing digital assets throughout their lifecycle, encompassing issuance, distribution, servicing, and reporting. The platform offers advanced transaction, account, and inventory management tools, along with an open smart contract framework designed to automate financial processes and enhance asset discoverability through reconcilable, self-describing data.

The ComposerX suite comprises three key platforms:

ComposerX Capital Markets Platform (CMP):A DLT-agnostic solution supporting token lifecycle management, including investor onboarding, trading, corporate actions, and transfer agency activities. CMP is designed to integrate with both legacy systems and ComposerX’s other platforms, enabling greater flexibility and transparency.

ComposerX Factory:A tokenisation engine with automated data management capabilities, supporting industry standards such as ERC-20 and ERC-3643. Factory enables the creation of “self-describing” smart tokens, embedding verifiable data schemas to facilitate discoverability and automated business processes.

ComposerX LedgerScan: A token activity monitoring and reconciliation tool, allowing firms to track token transactions across networks and integrate with existing accounting and custodial models. LedgerScan provides near real-time data transparency to help bridge traditional and digital financial infrastructure.

Nadine Chakar, Global Head of DTCC Digital Assets, commented: “We’re excited to launch the ComposerX suite, which provides firms with the tools they need to usher in a new era of institutional DeFi. This is a milestone in DTCC’s journey to lead the industry toward the development of a digital financial markets ecosystem, where digital assets are treated with the same care afforded to traditional securities. We look forward to continuing our work with the industry to build an open, secure and scalable financial markets infrastructure for the digital economy.”

ComposerX incorporates DTCC’s patented Compliance Aware Token Framework (CATF), which enables real-time regulatory enforcement during transactions. CATF automates compliance with multi-jurisdictional regulations, facilitating efficient and controlled asset tokenisation.

DTCC plans to continue enhancing ComposerX throughout 2025, including expanding Factory’s capabilities to enable greater composability of financial processes. The initiative aligns with DTCC’s broader strategy to develop a robust digital financial market infrastructure in collaboration with industry participants.

The UK’s Accelerated Settlement Taskforce (AST) has published its final plan to move to a T+1 settlement cycle by October 2027.

In the AST’s final implementation plan for the UK’s transition from T+2 to T+1 securities settlement, the taskforce confirmed 11 October 2027 will be the first trading date in UK cash equities for settlement on a T+1 cycle.

It comes as the AST published a report in March 2024 recommending the UK moves to T+1 by the end of 2027.

The deadline means the UK will be on track to be aligned with the European Union. The UK government previously said it will look to coordinate its move to a T+1 settlement cycle with the EU, with plans to reduce the cycle no later than the end of 2027.

The UK CSDR will be amended to reflect that T+1 will be mandatory from 11 October 2027.

The implementation plan includes a Code of Conduct for market participants outlining critical and highly recommended operational actions and behavioural commitments.

Andrew Douglas, chair of the UK T+1 AST, said: “This is a milestone in the UK’s journey to T+1 settlement and reflects a substantial amount of work and co-operation across the industry.

“We have a date and a detailed plan for the way ahead. Market participants should start planning now ahead of the 2025 budget process for project funding in 2026. Automation will be a key component of a successful implementation.”

The UK’s Accelerated Settlement Taskforce (AST) previously said in a report published in September 2024 that the UK’s potential decision to move to a T+1 settlement cycle ahead of the European Union will not impact ETFs, outlining two scopes where the fund structure will remain unaffected.

SIX launched the new Digital Collateral Service (DCS) today, permitting financial institutions to post selected cryptocurrency assets as collateral alongside traditional collateral.

The new product offers a solution through which clients can manage traditional securities and cryptocurrency collateral. Firms managing both bonds and bitcoin, for example, can now post both as collateral to cover a single exposure. This will simplify operations for traders and their counterparts significantly, enhancing portfolio management efficiency and minimizing counterparty risk. SIX has developed this service by combining and leveraging expertise from different areas in its international custody business and SDX.

Beyond providing a more seamless and holistic collateral management platform, DCS leverages the crypto custody infrastructure of SDX, delivering users enhanced safeguarding mechanisms. The default protection for collateral held in this type of account structure adds a layer of security that many institutional investors have been seeking to justify greater participation in institutional cryptocurrency trading.

Commenting on the launch of the new offering, David Newns, Head SDX, said: “The role of cryptocurrencies in collateral management will become increasingly important. Our new and fully integrated solution empowers product issuers, traders, brokers, and market makers to optimize their collateral usage, whether it’s crypto or traditional securities, with built-in risk management safeguards. This allows financial institutions to embrace crypto collateral on a larger scale.”

Christian Geiger, Head Clients & Products Securities Finance, SIX, added: “Building on our role as a trusted financial market infrastructure and leveraging the flexibility of our state-of-the-art Triparty Agent, we are thrilled to expand our offerings to include cryptocurrencies as a new asset class for collateralization. With the growing institutional appetite for digital assets, we are committed to meeting the needs of this highly risk-conscious investor segment through our established and reliable services.”

The European Central Bank (ECB) has decided to expand its initiative to settle transactions recorded on distributed ledger technology (DLT) in central bank money.

It will build on the Eurosystem’s exploratory work on new technologies for wholesale central bank money settlement, conducted between May and November 2024 — known as ECB trials.

Piero Cipollone, executive board member at ECB, who oversees the initiative, says: “We are embracing innovation without compromising on safety and stability.

“This is an important contribution to enhancing European financial market efficiency through innovation. Our approach will pay due attention to the Eurosystem’s goal of achieving a more harmonised and integrated European financial ecosystem.”

As soon as feasible, the Eurosystem will develop and implement a platform for settlements in central bank money through an interoperability link with TARGET Services.

Second, the Eurosystem will look into a more integrated, long-term solution for settling DLT-based transactions in central bank money, including foreign exchange settlement.

The Eurosystem aims to support the use of innovative solutions in its market infrastructures while maintaining the safety and efficiency of TARGET Services.

The initiative is expected to contribute to establishing an integrated European market for digital assets, in line with the ECB’s call for promoting a digital capital markets union.

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published technical standards on different aspects of the Central Securities Depositories Regulation (CSDR) Refit. The rules mainly affect central securities depositories (CSDs), but they also have indirect implications for market participants like investors, banks, and financial institutions.

The rules cover the information that European CSDs must provide to national competent authorities (NCAs) for review and evaluation, the criteria for assessing the importance of European CSDs in a host member state, and the information third-country CSDs must notify.

CSDs must report information in a consistent way to local regulators, which means they may need to upgrade their IT systems and data processes.

Foreign CSDs operating in the EU will have to provide more structured data, making it easier for regulators to understand their risks and role in the market.

If a CSD is considered important in another EU country, it gets extra supervision, which could mean faster and safer settlements for cross-border trades.

The technical standards are set out in three separate final reports, considering the input from relevant stakeholders.

Coming into force in February 2023, the CSDR Refit is a revision of the original CSDR adopted by the EU in 2017 to harmonise and strengthen the settlement infrastructure within the region by regulating CSDs and the securities settlement process.

ESMA has submitted the three final reports to the European Commission, which has three months to decide whether to endorse the proposed amendments.