TMX says blockchain, fintech still a priority after executive exit

Canada's biggest stock exchange operator is committed to exploring new technologies such as blockchain despite the exit of its first chief digital officer after less than a year in the job, a senior TMX Group Ltd executive said on Tuesday. "This continues to be a priority for us as we look to modernize the business," Jean Desgagne, head of Global Enterprise Services at TMX, said in an interview.
"As we go further down the line, as we look at our new clearing technologies supporting our integrated clearing houses, it may be that there's a series of public products that come out of that."
In the short to medium term, however, the exchange operator is looking at how to best apply blockchain internally, such as handling securities transfers and managing settlements, to make processes more efficient.
"That's probably the easiest, fastest way to really get our hands dirty and really understand it," said Desgagne, who is responsible for the delivery of operations, technology, transaction services and procurement at TMX. "We are very deep in the planning process for how we would use them."
Blockchain, the distributed-ledger system technology that underpins the virtual currency bitcoin, allows users to conduct secure transactions with each other without the need for middlemen or central oversight.