• 59% lack full funding to complete their T+1 transition, while 80% face severe or significant external counterparty friction

• Despite readiness gap, firms expect widespread atomic settlement within 3.7 years, with 63% already live or piloting tokenised settlement

• 74% believe the UK is well-positioned to lead globally in digital market infrastructure

More than eight in ten (83%) UK post-trade professionals say their firms are fully prepared or on track to meet the UK’s October 2027 T+1 settlement deadline, but only 32% describe their operations as fully prepared today, according to The Race to Atomic Settlement: Can the UK Lead?, a new whitepaper from UK post-trade technology firm Tokenovate.

The report, based on a survey of 250 senior post-trade professionals in the UK, reveals a market in which confidence is running ahead of operational readiness. Only 41% say their combined T+1 readiness and broader post-trade transformation programme is fully funded, leaving 59% without adequate budget in place.

The gap between market ambition and operational reality extends beyond T+1. Respondents expect widespread UK adoption of T+0 or atomic settlement within an average of 3.7 years, yet almost every firm still relies significantly on manual processing somewhere in the post-trade lifecycle.

Operational constraints extend across the market, with 80% saying dependencies on external counterparties and market infrastructure providers significantly or severely limit modernisation. Despite 99% reporting at least partial post-trade automation, nearly every firm still relies significantly on manual processing in at least one area, including allocation management, reconciliation and trade confirmation.

Data fragmentation remains another major constraint, with 88% describing it as a critical or significant challenge to post-trade efficiency. While 93% are aware of the FINOS Common Domain Model (CDM), only 38% say they are actively implementing or using it.

Other key findings include:

• Trapped liquidity creates a material burden: 98% regard capital tied up as a result of slow or fragmented settlement as a material cost or risk to their organisation.

• Real-time settlement moves into planning: 79% have T+0 or real-time settlement on their agenda, including 46% with a formal T+0 or real-time settlement roadmap with defined milestones.

• Tokenised settlement is moving beyond discussion: 63% are live with or piloting tokenised settlement, while a further 26% have formal plans to explore it.

• Interoperability ranks among leading benefits: 31% cite improved interoperability across counterparties and platforms as one of the most important potential benefits of fully automated, real-time settlement.

• UK leadership opportunity: 74% believe the UK is well positioned to lead globally in digital market infrastructure and atomic settlement.

Richard Baker, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Tokenovate, commented, “Confidence around T+1 is encouraging, but being on track is not the same as being operationally ready. Many firms still depend on manual processes, fragmented data and infrastructure outside their direct control. With less time to resolve issues under T+1, those weaknesses will become harder to manage.

“The market believes widespread UK T+0 or atomic settlement could be less than four years away. Firms need to make sure the work they do for T+1 also prepares them for what follows. That starts with consistent, standardised data, so trades are represented in the same way across systems and counterparties. If we get that right, the UK has a real opportunity to lead.”

“Confidence around T+1 is encouraging, but being on track is not the same as being operationally ready. Many firms still depend on manual processes, fragmented data and infrastructure outside their direct control. With less time to resolve issues under T+1, those weaknesses will become harder to manage.

To learn more about the UK’s readiness for T+1 and the transition to real-time settlement, download the full whitepaper, The Race to Atomic Settlement: Can the UK Lead?, here: https://mkt.tokenovate.com/the-race-to-atomic-settlement 

Source: Tokenovate