Clearstream and LCH SA Expand Settlement Services for Italian Government Debt

Clearstream and LCH SA have extended their existing partnership to include settlement services for Italian government debt. This development allows LCH SA clearing members to settle all Italian sovereign debt instruments, including cash and repo transactions, through Clearstream’s international and domestic central securities depositories (CSD). The service is scheduled to go live during 2026.

By adding Italy to a framework that already covers French, Belgian, German, Austrian, and Spanish securities, the collaboration aims to reduce market fragmentation. Clearing members can now consolidate their settlement activity within Clearstream’s Trade Flow Hub, which connects major trading venues and central counterparties. This unified gateway is designed to improve liquidity management and operational efficiency for participants across the European sovereign debt market.

The initiative supports the broader goal of integrating European capital market infrastructure through open access. By providing an additional settlement venue, the two organisations intend to streamline post-trade processes and enhance access to one of Europe’s largest sovereign debt markets. This expansion reinforces the commitment of both Clearstream and LCH SA to fostering a more connected and efficient financial ecosystem for their global clients.

Avelacom Expands Low-Latency Connectivity to Argentine Capital Markets

Avelacom, the global provider of low-latency network solutions, has expanded into Argentina to provide financial institutions with direct access to the country’s equities and derivatives markets. The company is launching a new Point of Presence (PoP) at the Bolsas y Mercados Argentinos (BYMA) data centre in Buenos Aires.

The expansion includes new low-latency routes across the east and west coasts of Latin America via Brazil and Chile. These routes are designed to provide resilient connectivity between Argentina, the US, and other global markets. This move follows Avelacom’s entry into the region in 2021 and responds to increased trading activity on the BYMA exchange, which saw a 45% year-on-year increase in trades and a 58% rise in orders during 2025.

By establishing this presence, Avelacom aims to support arbitrage and market-making strategies across Argentina, Brazil, and the US. The company plans to further interconnect markets in Chile, Colombia, and Peru over the coming year. This development addresses a growing demand for sophisticated trading infrastructure in Argentina, where the market remains underpenetrated compared to the broader Latin American average.

Symphony Accelerates AI Integration and Announces Leadership Changes

Symphony is advancing its secure AI and workflow capabilities following a year of significant growth. The company, serving over 1,400 clients, has introduced the AI Agent Studio, a framework designed to let institutions create and deploy AI agents for internal and external workflows. This new tool leverages Symphony’s verified directory and compliance infrastructure, allowing firms to automate complex tasks while maintaining strict data control.

Alongside these product developments, Symphony announced a leadership transition. Ben Chrnelich, formerly co-CEO, has been appointed Chief Executive Officer and President. Brad Levy will move to an external advisory role for the board. The company also highlighted the integration of its AI studio with the Confidential Cloud platform, launched in 2025, which offers cloud scalability with on-premise security levels. Additionally, Symphony is launching WhatsApp Voice with secure recording and archiving, enhancing Microsoft Teams connectivity, and expanding its trader voice analytics to extract insights from high-quality call data.

Synechron Launches Agentic AI Portfolio for Regulated Financial Sectors

Synechron has launched Synechron Agentic, a portfolio of production-ready AI agents tailored for complex and regulated workflows. The initiative aims to help enterprises accelerate their operations while mitigating risk, ensuring that automated processes deliver accurate and consistent results with complete transparency.

The initial release focuses specifically on banking, financial services, wealth management, payments, and insurance. Designed for immediate deployment within real business processes, the agents are fully governed to meet industry standards. They also integrate with established enterprise platforms, including ServiceNow, Salesforce, Appian, and Datadog, enabling organisations to incorporate AI into current systems without operational disruption.

Capital.com Selects Duco to Automate Client and Payment Reconciliations

Capital.com, the global fintech group and online trading platform, has selected Duco to transform its critical client and payment reconciliation processes. By deploying Duco’s AI-powered operational data automation platform, Capital.com intends to manage the increasing volume and complexity of its data inputs more effectively. This strategic move is designed to provide a flexible and modern infrastructure capable of handling the demands of a growing financial institution.

The implementation of Duco’s technology aims to provide a scalable, future-proof solution that strengthens the company’s control environment. Key objectives include increasing operational efficiency and significantly reducing operational risk. Furthermore, this robust foundation is expected to support Capital.com’s sustainable expansion into new markets across multiple jurisdictions, ensuring the firm is well-equipped to handle complex data requirements inherent in global trading.

AQX Technologies Launches SWIFT Connector for Post-Trade Automation

AQX Technologies has announced the launch of its new SWIFT Connector, designed to streamline post-trade messaging for buy-side and sell-side firms. This addition to the AQX platform provides native support for SWIFT messaging, enabling clients to send and receive trade confirmations and data securely. The integration facilitates straight-through processing (STP) from trade capture to settlement, replacing legacy manual workflows such as emails and CSV-based processes.

By orchestrating confirmations, status updates, and exceptions within a single system, the connector helps firms reduce operational risk and improve confirmation times. It also strengthens audit trails to meet evolving regulatory requirements. This release builds on AQX’s recent growth and supports the wider industry trend of modernising middle- and back-office operations for greater speed and accuracy.

TNS Expands APAC Footprint with Connectivity to Japan Alternative Market

Transaction Network Services (TNS) has expanded its infrastructure in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region by establishing connectivity to the Japan Alternative Market (JAX). This integration provides customers with direct, managed access to market data feeds from JAX, which began operations in December 2024 as a new trading venue for Japanese equities. Global firms can now incorporate this data into their trading and analytics workflows through TNS’s extensive global network.

This new connection addresses the complexity of accessing Asian exchanges, which often require bespoke broker arrangements. TNS simplifies this by enabling clients to view JAX market data alongside other major exchanges via a low-latency managed network and an extranet of over 5,000 endpoints. The addition of JAX reinforces TNS’s presence in the region, joining an existing Japanese exchange portfolio that includes Japannext, the Tokyo Financial Exchange (TFX), and the Japan Exchange Group (JPX).

LSEG Launches Digital Settlement House for Instantaneous Cross-Network Settlements

LSEG has launched Digital Settlement House (LSEG DiSH), an open-access platform facilitating instantaneous settlement between independent payment networks, both on and off-chain. Utilising DiSH Cash – commercial bank deposits held on the DiSH ledger – the service enables the 24/7 movement of money across multiple currencies and jurisdictions. It supports Payment versus Payment (PvP) and Delivery versus Payment (DvP) models, providing a real cash leg for foreign exchange and digital asset transactions across traditional and digital infrastructures.

Operating within LSEG’s Post Trade Solutions business, the platform allows participants to orchestrate payments on any connected network. This capability unlocks trapped assets and optimises liquidity through new intraday borrowing and lending tools. By reducing settlement timelines, the service mitigates settlement risk and increases collateral availability. The launch follows a successful Proof of Concept with Digital Asset and a financial consortium on the Canton Network, which demonstrated the effective tokenisation and transfer of commercial bank deposits.

Integral Triples Infrastructure at Equinix Singapore to Meet Regional Demand

Integral, a currency technology provider, has tripled its infrastructure footprint at the Equinix SG1 data centre in Singapore. This expansion is a direct response to soaring regional demand and significantly increased transaction volumes, with the company now processing over one million tickets daily at the facility. To support this growth, Integral is utilising Equinix Fabric, a software-defined interconnection service, to establish private and direct connections with cloud service providers, key partners, and customers.

The expanded SG1 facility serves clients across the wider Asia-Pacific region, supporting the company’s robust growth and recent client partnerships. This investment in infrastructure ensures scalability and reliability, allowing Integral to manage higher system loads without compromising speed or performance. Alongside its Singapore operations, the company maintains infrastructure within Equinix facilities in London (LD3), New York (NY4), and Tokyo (TY4).

STP Investment Services Integrates Passthrough into BluePrint Platform

STP Investment Services has integrated Passthrough, a subscription automation platform, directly into its proprietary BluePrint ecosystem. This enhancement is designed to streamline the experience for fund managers and investors by reducing administrative friction and improving data accuracy. By embedding Passthrough’s technology, STP aims to accelerate the onboarding process for Limited Partners (LPs) while maintaining a fully connected operational environment.

The integration enables a seamless transition from investor subscription to ongoing servicing without leaving the BluePrint platform. Data collected through Passthrough’s digital workflows now populates directly into STP’s middle- and back-office systems, eliminating the need for manual reconciliation and redundant data entry. This creates a unified ecosystem that offers faster document exchange and greater process visibility for both General Partners (GPs) and LPs throughout the fund lifecycle.