At the end of September 2019, The TRADE has announced the shortlist for this year’s Editors’ Choice awards. SIX has been nominated in two categories: with the Swiss Stock Exchange as the "Outstanding Equities Trading Venue" and with SIX Digital Exchange (SDX) for the "Digital Initiative of the Year".
Order Book Quality and Best in Class Exchange Infrastructure
The nomination of the Swiss Stock Exchange recognizes the strong performance in 2018 and its capacity to ensure efficient trading throughout 2019, despite the challenges presented by the EU’s decision to not extend equivalency, which resulted in unprecedented volume spikes and historically high market share in blue chips compared with its peers. From 1 July 2019 the ordinance adopted by the Swiss Federal Council to safeguard and strengthen a strong Swiss Capital Market became operational, and the transition of EU trading volumes of Swiss equities has been conducted without disruption.
Despite these challenges, the Swiss Stock Exchange’s innovative drive and customer focus remains unimpaired, as highlighted, for example, by the introduction of the unique "Plus" orders. They have allowed clients to gain significant price improvements when trading Swiss shares while offering greater flexibility and efficiency as well as increasing the liquidity and quality of the home market for Swiss securities.
Christian Reuss, Head Sales and Member of the Management Committee of Securities & Exchanges at SIX, commented: "We are delighted to receive this nomination. The Swiss Stock Exchange embraces competition, and we concentrate our efforts to accommodate market needs. We will continue to focus on our key strengths which have allowed us, over the past years, to improve the quality of our order books, resulting in a strong market share and a growing attractiveness of Swiss shares."
Driving Competitiveness Through Innovation
For the first time, this year’s awards include the category "Digital Initiative of the Year". SIX, the operator of the Swiss Stock Exchange, has been nominated with SIX Digital Exchange (SDX). Announced in July 2018, SDX is building the world’s first end-to-end platform for digital assets, where professionals can access, transfer and store value while running firmly on trusted regulation. On 23 September 2019, SDX launched a prototype of its digital exchange and CSD.
Thomas Zeeb, Head Securities & Exchanges and Member of the Executive Board at SIX, said: "The launch of this prototype is a major milestone in creating a credible digital infrastructure for moving our industry forward. We are now one step closer to demonstrating the viability of our vision for the financial markets of the future and, ultimately, for the way people and businesses access capital. SDX is a testament to the innovative nature of the Swiss Stock Exchange and the foresight of its shareholders." At Sibos 2019 SIX is providing insights into SDX and showcasing its activities in the realms of AI.
The winners in each category will be announced at the Leaders in Trading 2019 ceremony at London’s Savoy Hotel on 21 November.