Blockchain-Based BSTX Approved as US Securities Exchange

On January 27, 2022, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) issued an order (the “Order) approving the creation of BSTX as an equity trading facility of BOX Exchange. BSTX, a joint venture of BOX Digital Markets LLC and tZERO Group, Inc., will be the first fully-automated, price/time priority execution exchange for trading securities that is both regulated by the SEC and leverages existing private blockchain technologies.

The highly-anticipated SEC ruling will provide substantial benefits to U.S. capital markets by offering:

• Shorter On Exchange Settlements. BSTX allows participants to elect accelerated settlement (i.e., T+0 or T+1) for securities listed on BSTX. BSTX’s approach is consistent with accelerated settlement capabilities currently supported by NSCC and DTC.
• Proprietary Blockchain Data Feeds. BSTX will be using a private, permissioned blockchain that it maintains and controls, making available to industry participants certain proprietary market data related to trading activity occurring on BSTX.

“The SEC has taken an important step forward today in its approval of BSTX as a national securities exchange,” said BSTX CEO Lisa Fall. “We are eager to continue to work closely with the SEC to launch a fully regulated new exchange and to help provide capital markets with more modern tools for issuers and investors. We are particularly grateful to our technology partner in this endeavor tZERO. We are looking forward to continuing to work with them to provide institutional grade trading technology to participants on BSTX. ”

As the newest national securities exchange, BSTX creates a new dynamic for retail and institutional investors as well as issuers while setting a new standard for the use of blockchain by spearheading adoption of innovative technology for mainstream use cases.

In addition to new opportunities for more efficient allocation of issuer and investor capital the exchange will serve as an industry sandbox. “Our overarching goal is to empower developers and exchange observers to leverage the innovation and modern market structure currently being leveraged in crypto and blockchain technologies to come up with ideas to improve the listing and trading experience for all,” said Ms. Fall.

“Today’s approval is only the start for BSTX. We are encouraged and energized by the outreach to date from both traditional and non-traditional finance participants. Utilizing future rule filings, we plan to respond with a series of further innovations that will benefit both the issuer and trading communities,” continued Ms. Fall.

Source: BSTX