Certain post-trade processing costs for cash securities at large broker-dealer firms could be reduced by 20-25% through automation, according to a recent survey of nine of the world’s leading broker-dealer firms by The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC).
DTCC analyzed individual broker operating costs to estimate potential efficiency and cost savings by leveraging the full suite of DTCC’s Institutional Trade Processing (ITP) solutions, which enable no-touch processing from trade agreement through to settlement finality.
The survey found that, for large global broker-dealers that typically spend roughly $150 – 175 million globally on post-trade services related to cash securities, implementing a no-touch processing workflow can reduce headcount, repair charges, technology expenses and claims and fees significantly.
Breakdown:
- SSI reference data – $1.5 million per firm
- Trade support – $7 million per firm
- Settlements – $10.8 million per firm
- Agent bank fees – $2.3 million per firm
- Asset servicing – $2 million per firm
- Financing – $5 – 10 million per firm
- Technology expenses – $5.4 million per firm
Matthew Stauffer, managing director and head of Institutional Trade Processing at DTCC, said in a statement: “The findings of our survey highlight the benefits of leveraging automated post-trade solutions to reduce the costs of operational functions and the risk inherent in manual processes. The adoption of a no-touch workflow allows firms to focus their resources on the parts of their business that create true value.”
For mid-sized and smaller broker-dealers, the use of a no-touch workflow could enable higher levels of automation and increased scalability to more effectively handle volume spikes, all of which would not typically be affordable or possible to replicate with internal resources.