CCIL chief explains what financial markets will now need to keep pace with volatile geopolitics

Mumbai: Future financial market infrastructure will need greater agility, deeper intelligence and stronger integration to keep pace with rapid technological change and an increasingly fragile geopolitical backdrop, said Rajeshwar Rao, chairman, Clearing Corporation of India (CCIL).

Rao also highlighted the need to address risks ranging from cyber threats to supply chain disruptions.

CCIL facilitates clearing and settlement of a host of financial assets, including government bonds and other money-market instruments.


Rao said CCIL’s next phase of development will hinge on the use of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning to improve operational efficiency, strengthen decision-making and enhance system resilience. At the same time, market infrastructure institutions will need to contend with growing competition from fintech firms and innovations such as distributed ledger technologies, which are reshaping how financial services are delivered.

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“We should also be ready to handle disruptive innovations in a proactive and preactive manner. Even as we face these challenges, we must be ready to offer a wider bouquet of risk management products in the markets that we operate,” said Rao on Wednesday, at CCILs 25th anniversary event.

Against this backdrop, the CCIL is aiming to build a more adaptive and future-ready ecosystem, including reimagining trading platforms into unified workspaces that integrate trading, risk management, analytics and market data.

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More recently, the institution has expanded into areas such as margin and collateral management for non-centrally cleared derivatives, Rao said.

As financial markets deepen and scale with economic growth, the focus will be on expanding the range of risk management products, improving market access and potentially taking services global.

However, ensuring robust cybersecurity, operational resilience and access to specialised talent will remain critical to CCIL as it navigates an increasingly complex and competitive landscape, he said.