DTCC won Best in Clearing at the inaugural Global Markets Choice Awards.

Markets Media caught up with Brian Steele, Managing Director, President, Clearing & Securities Services at DTCC, to learn more.

Tell us about DTCC’s mission.

For over 50 years, DTCC has been committed to safeguarding and advancing global financial markets. Our robust technology and automation solutions seamlessly blend rigorous risk management with forward-thinking innovation, helping firms streamline operations, lower costs, strengthen balance sheets and gain greater visibility into the post-trade process.  As innovation and new technology continue to reshape the way financial services firms operate, DTCC is uniquely positioned to be a foundational force, enhancing market resilience while enabling the adoption of next-generation technologies like distributed ledger, machine learning, and AI-driven risk analytics.

How does DTCC balance innovation with the need to manage systemic risk? 

Our innovation efforts are underpinned by a robust risk management framework, enabling us to enhance operational efficiency and deliver new solutions while upholding the highest standards of market safety and stability. We actively engage with market participants, regulators and industry bodies to ensure that our solutions align with client needs, regulatory requirements and industry best practices. This close ongoing collaboration also ensures DTCC stays connected to the evolving industry landscape. Additionally, we conduct regular stress testing and scenario analysis to ensure the resilience of our systems under a range of conditions. These proactive measures allow us to identify further ways to continuously enhance our systems, ensuring that we remain prepared and vigilant in an increasingly complex and volatile trading environment.

How did DTCC help prepare the industry for the US transition to T+1 settlement? 

DTCC played a pivotal role in preparing the industry for the US transition to T+1 settlement in May 2024. Key to this effort was our active and on-going engagement with stakeholders – including market participants, regulators and industry bodies – throughout the planning and implementation period. Recognizing the complexities and challenges associated with the move, we spearheaded several educational initiatives to ensure readiness, offering detailed guidance and planning documentation, robust support and extended testing. By fostering an environment of collaboration and open dialogue, we were able to ensure a smooth implementation.

As a result of this collaboration, the US transition to T+1 was universally considered a success. Market participants benefited almost immediately following the move, including from a reduction in the clearing fund of $3 billion, a roughly 95% same-day affirmation rate and fail rates which were consistent or better than a T+2 environment. The US continues to experience same day affirmation rates of 95% or more (higher than in T+2), with a fail rate of 2 – 3% in CNS and non-CNS environments (consistent with T+2 fail rates). Our equities clearing house, National Securities Clearing Corporation (NSCC) and our Institutional Trade Processing (ITP) suite of services were critical to the successful implementation of this important industry initiative.

Please tell us about some additional focus areas where DTCC is helping the industry. 

DTCC has been keenly focused on several initiatives that impact market structure and our clients. In addition to our work around T+1, we are actively working to enhance NSCC capabilities to support 24×5 trading. Extending clearing hours will deliver increased client value by maximizing liquidity and reducing counterparty risk as NSCC will be able to apply its central counterparty guarantee to overnight activity across time zones. It is anticipated that NSCC will extend its clearing hours from 8pm to 8am ET, Monday-Friday by Q2 2026, subject to any necessary regulatory approvals.

In addition, FICC’s Government Securities Division (GSD) has advanced its decades-long role in the US Treasury clearing landscape by leading the industry as we collectively work to meet SEC requirements to clear cash transactions by December 2026 and repo transactions by June 2027. In support of this, FICC has delivered new clearing capabilities and access models, provided market participants with resources and education, and collaborated across the industry to ensure a smooth implementation. These enhancements have not only enabled new entrants to voluntarily access clearing at FICC, but have also delivered new capital and liquidity benefits to users well in advance of regulatory deadlines.

What principles guide DTCC’s long-term strategy and decision-making? 

DTCC’s long-term strategy is guided by three core principles: innovation, resilience, and collaboration. Innovation drives our investment in technologies like cloud, AI and blockchain to enhance efficiency and transparency and advance markets. Resilience ensures we continue to deliver robust and secure systems to successfully manage market stress and volatility through rigorous testing and risk management measures. Collaboration is central to all we do – ensuring we remain aligned with our clients, regulators, and industry bodies as we build an even more transparent and robust post-trade environment. By prioritizing these principles, DTCC will continue to advance the financial markets while maintaining stability and trustworthiness.

What can we expect from DTCC in the near future? 

Our clients are at the center of everything we do. We will continue to work alongside them as a strategic partner to ensure our solutions evolve in line with their needs. We have delivered innovation underpinned by safety and soundness for over 5 decades, and we will continue to lead with the same purpose.

No doubt, the future is digital, and we will play a critical role ushering in a new chapter in financial services. DTCC is leading the way in building this digital asset ecosystem. We are pioneering initiatives in securities tokenization, digital asset custody, and blockchain technology to boost transparency and operational efficiency. We are committed to providing a safe, secure digital asset ecosystem that moves past experimentation silos, encourages collaboration and testing, identifies the path to production and ultimately bridges traditional finance with digital finance.