The Singapore Exchange (SGX) announced on Monday that it'll be launching its Quotation and Execution System for Trading (Quest-ST) in July next year. This would mean that Quest-ST will be up and running one year before it was intially planed.

In one of our interviews with SGX's CEO Hsieh Fu Hua, he said that by the middle of next year, both Singapore Exchange Securities Order Processing System (Sesops) and Central Limit Order Book (Clob) will be taken out to be replaced by Quest-ST.

This move was brought forward because last month, there was a number of glitches in 17-year old Sesops that caused several brokerage houses unable to trade for a few hours.

It's about time that that old system is being replaced.

My reasons:

First, in technology, things become obsolete very quickly. There are more efficient and newer systems to cope with the fast-paced economy and markets.

Second, 17 years for a heavily-used system is a bit too long. The systems' ageing. It's amazing that the Sesops and Clob are still being used in daily trade considering how long they have been around. The amount of shares exchanging hands every single day is from millions to billions. The systems might not be able to cope with those amount in the very near future.

Although Quest-ST will run a year before planned, it is still a bit too late.

My first and only reason:

The problem is now. There might be more problems this month, next month, and the months after that. Considering how important for trade to fall through correctly and nicely, next July is still quite far. On top of that, earning season is around the corner and glitches especially during that period is a no-no.

In fact, the glitches now is still a no-no.


Nurwidya Abdul