ASIC buys market surveillance tool

Preparing for market supervision role

By Darin Tyson-Chan
Thu 25 Mar 2010

ASIC has taken a significant step towards performing its new market surveillance role.

ASIC has improved its ability to analyse market activity and identify suspicious trading practices with the acquisition of an integrated market surveillance system (IMSS).

In August last year, the federal government added the market surveillance function to the regulator's range of responsibilities. The role had previously been carried out by the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX).

"ASIC is well advanced in our planning for the transfer of market supervision powers. The procurement of the IMSS is an important milestone in the transition and will underpin the streamlined markets analysis methodology and relationship management model ASIC has developed to monitor and engage market participants," ASIC commissioner Belinda Gibson said.

"The IMSS will support the new markets surveillance team, which ASIC has built from existing staff and new hires from ASX, supplemented with talent from the market," she said.

SMART Market Surveillance has been chosen to supply the IMSS application, with installation of the system expected to be in July this year. SMART brings to the regulator over 15 years of experience in putting together market surveillance systems.

ASIC will be implementing the new system with a view to keeping any disruptions to the market at a minimal level. The corporate regulator is scheduled to take on its monitoring of the domestic licenced markets in the third quarter of 2010.

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