The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) has revealed some of the findings from its consultation on the CHESS replacement system today, unveiling that more than 90 per cent of CHESS users are able to meet the proposed go-live date of April 2022.
Based on Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ), the new equities clearing and settlement system will replace its decades-old CHESS system. As part of this, the ASX is now reviewing the feedback it received during the consultation period, which was closed on 28th July 2020.
As of 4th August 2020, 91 per cent of CHESS users, who made submissions during the period, will be ready for the revised April 2020 go-live date. The Australian exchange said that there were a few exceptions that were not able to confirm their readiness.
Instead, these firms have requested more information on particular issues from the ASX, which the exchange said it would assist them with, in the near-term.
Even though the majority of responses to the exchange were positive, the exchange highlighted in its statement today that it has not made a final decision on the revised schedule.
Before the exchange will commit to the new launch date, a detailed review of all submissions and any other considerations need to be undertaken before being finalised.
ASX Continues to Delay the Launch of CHESS Replacement
As Finance Magnates reported, in September of 2018, the ASX delayed the launch of its Blockchain -based CHESS system to the second quarter of 2021. Then, in March of this year, the exchange delayed the launch indefinitely.
Commenting on the update, Dominic Stevens, ASX Managing Director and CEO said in a statement: “We appreciate the input and responses we have received from the market – not just for this consultation but for the CHESS replacement project overall.
“The CHESS replacement project has involved the most interaction ASX has ever undertaken with the market. We’re grateful that so many CHESS users have responded constructively to this consultation. This provides us with a sound starting point as we now carefully consider all submissions.”
