Global investment banks have their sights set on the effective integration of distributed ledger technology (DLT) as their technology priority over the next 3 years, according to new research from SIX.

The 2023 annual Future of Finance report from SIX, canvassed the views of 343 C-suite executives at financial institutions, including asset managers, wealth managers, investment banks, and asset servicers. These institutions geographically span the UK, Germany, Switzerland, Spain, the US, Hong Kong and Singapore.

Almost half (45%) of investment banks surveyed, selected the integration of DLT/blockchain as their primary technology priority over the next 3 years. This placed just behind their top answer of integration and provision of solutions/data through APIs, in stark contrast to the asset management community, who saw data analytics for value capture as the key priority (58%).

Meanwhile, over a third (35%) of investment banks see the expansion into alternative asset classes, specifically digital assets, private markets, and infrastructure projects, as the biggest enabler for their organization’s growth over the next 3 years. This was a view shared by the asset management community, with 41% citing it the second most common answer from both groups after the implementation of AI and machine learning use cases.

Commenting on the research, David Newns, Head SIX Digital Exchange, said: “As highlighted by our Cornerstones for Growth report launched earlier this year, there is growing desire among investors to trade digital tokens on institutional platforms with clear regulatory oversight. We believe our success in becoming the first regulated exchange to offer digital assets will increase and sustain adoption, leading to more innovations.”

Source: SIX