Microsoft Partners with NASDAQ To Implement Blockchain-Based Trading System
Microsoft recently partnered with Nasdaq to integrate the Microsoft Azure Blockchain into Nasdaq’s Financial Framework, a technology software that provides end-to-end infrastructure for financial providers. According to Microsoft Azure’s blog post published on October 30, 2018, the blockchain system will make it easier for traders, exchanges, and clearing houses on Nasdaq’s Financial Framework to interact and work together.
Blockchain: A Competitive Advantage for Nasdaq
Magnus Haglind, the Senior Vice President and Head of Product Management for Nasdaq’s market technology business noted that the capital markets industry is currently evolving significantly faster than ever, due to the advancement of emerging technology. Haglind recognizes that, as a critical player in the market, understanding how to leverage emerging technologies like blockchain not only improve existing processes but can also be a significant competitive advantage for the company.
According to Microsoft Azure’s blog, the Azure blockchain will help ensure that Nasdaq’s different technologies in their monolithic infrastructure system can work together to improve the overall customer experience. For example, blockchain technology can help create an interoperable communication system between the core Nasdaq Financial Framework Infrastructure, the middleware and customer technologies.
Delivery Payment And Settlement of Transactions
While blockchain technology can improve many existing processes in Nasdaq’s system, Nasdaq sees an immediate opportunity for blockchain technology to handle the delivery payment and settlement of transactions, especially if these transactions are on multiple blockchains, each with a different approach to payment.
“With multiple blockchains in use by various industry participants, we believe that the combination of Nasdaq’s Financial Framework and Microsoft’s blockchain technology can remove some of the project complexities that exist in this realm,” said Tom Fay, the Senior Vice President of Enterprise Architecture at Nasdaq.
Bloomberg reported that the Nasdaq Financial Framework would also offer consumers a multi-ledger strategy. Consumers have the choice to use different blockchains under a standard interface. A multi-ledger strategy and a secure and interoperable system create a very sophisticated blockchain ecosystem, which can ensure that transactions and contracts are executed in a safer, more secure and scalable way.
Nasdaq remains hopeful and confident that this approach will boost the use of blockchain technology globally, and help their customers select the best option for their situation.
