[ I N T E R V I E W
|
J O S
Every day we get closer to what we
think is the right starting position,
in terms of the technology solution
and potential asset classes we will
start with. Let me clarify that we
will not start with cryptocurrencies
D I J S S E L H O F ]
individual parties make money
out of each step, could disappear.
It could go into a system where
the moment you do a transaction
everything else is done as well and
you don’t need all of these individ-
“The digital asset ecosystem could be a real
game-changer. T+2 and the whole value chain
that is currently in place could disappear.”
and we will stay away from that for
a while. Only if that becomes reg-
ulated, mainstream and safe, will
we consider admitting that onto
our exchange, but we will probably
start with existing assets, digital-
ised or tokenised, on the exchange.
The biggest work ahead of us
is to define how this is going to
work from a regulatory and legal
perspective. There is still a lot to
be done with the regulators, with
FINMA and the lawyers, making
sure that ownership transfer really
does mean ownership transfer.
In terms of the operating model
and the way we are going to set it
up internally, we’ve created a sepa-
rate company with clear, dedicated
leadership in parallel to existing
businesses that are co-mingling.
We have seen progress in these
areas, whereas on the regulatory
and legal side there is still a lot of
work to be done, which is probably
also the hardest work.
In my view, the whole crux of this
is not the technology or applying
blockchain, it’s about how we make
sure that this is a safe environment
where ownership and finality of
transactions is safeguarded, both in
good and bad weather.
The digital asset ecosystem
could be a real game-changer. T+2
and the whole value chain that is
currently in place, where all the
88 // TheTrade // Winter 2018
ual players anymore. You can bring
all types of other asset classes onto
an exchange like that - buildings,
wine collections, art collections, all
the things that you read about, in a
fractionised manner.
There is also a potential oppor-
tunity to allow more direct access
into this model. Currently you
must go to a bank or a broker or
others, so there could be some
distintermeditaion. If this works
and it takes out huge amounts of
risk, because T+2 inherently means
you need to keep collateral before
the money is there and you manage
that risk in basically two days in
the whole process, and if that is
gone then collateral, the kind of
margin you need to put in and all of
these things, are gone.
So, it can dramatically increase the
efficiency and the risk profile of that
business, and it opens up the many
more classes. If that works the way
I have it in my mind and our teams
have it in their minds, this can be a
radical game-changer and it could
very well be that you and I will be
sitting in the future and existing
business is completely marginalised
because the whole digital exchange
set-up is taking over.
We have done the calculations,
there is an element of cannibalis-
ing what we have but we think the
opportunities of doing more on the
digital world and the advantage
of being a first mover - which is
extremely important, I push my
teams really hard to make sure we
get there on time - means that the
upside is much bigger than the
downside.
You have an extensive history
across the sell-side; what were the
key lessons you took into the new
role with SIX?
JD: While working at banks I have
always been, to some sense, frus-
trated or annoyed about the lack of
risk-taking at institutions that are
built to manage risk. I know that
whatever we do, the biggest lesson
that I bring to SIX is that we need
to be clear about the vision; where
things are going, why we think this
makes sense, why we think this is
a better solution in the long-term,
and take our customers along with
us step-by-step. I have seen too
many infrastructure initiatives
where nobody uses these new,
shiny technologies.
Engagement and taking people
along on your journey, explaining
why it is beneficial to all key stake-
holders in the ecosystem is crucial.
If we don’t do that then we will not
get the sell-side or the banks along
with us.
I have also seen that if you want
to be successful in banking or
financial business, technology is a
differentiator, so you have to invest
in technology and you need to
make sure that your core technolo-
gy is fit for purpose. You can’t just
wait for the big investment proj-
ects, you need make sure your core
technology and the way you use
your data centres, set up your secu-
rity, organise your data distribution
and application development is top
notch. If that is not the case, you
will always run behind the curve.