Introducing SimpliCT - Our First Step Towards a Bid to Operate the Equities Consolidated Tape

Today, we were excited to announce our intention to form SimpliCT, a joint initiative between Cboe Europe and Aquis Exchange, which plans to explore a bid to operate the EU’s equities consolidated tape. SimpliCT’s aim would be to deliver a high-quality, low-cost and comprehensive view of European equity markets that can be trusted by institutional and retail investors.

This has been a passion project for us at Cboe - and many across the industry – for a long time.

From Cboe’s perspective, our commitment to this initiative is because we believe so strongly in the benefits that a well-operated and governed tape can bring to EU capital markets, by enhancing transparency, democratising access to data and boosting liquidity.

While Mifid/Mifid II injected much-needed competition in equity trading, it hasn’t been able to solve for the fragmentation of market data. Sourcing market data from various venues, each with unique specifications and licensing models, is complex and expensive, forcing firms to ration their access to data and deterring participation in European equity markets. A consolidated tape would help solve this problem and help make the EU be viewed as a single investable universe with dramatic benefits, especially for companies listed on smaller EU exchanges through increased exposure.

Cboe, along with a consortium of buyside and sell side firms and their trade associations, successfully deployed these arguments to EU policymakers, securing a political agreement for the introduction of a real-time pre- and post-trade equities tape from 2026. This was a significant improvement over the initially proposed post-trade only tape, and all the more impressive despite strong opposition from Europe’s national exchanges. It is what the market wants.

The final step is for ESMA to deliver on this political mandate by choosing a provider with the necessary technical, operational, and commercial expertise, and who is strongly aligned with policymakers’ vision. Enter SimpliCT, which would seek to meet this ambitious goal. As the name suggests, its aim would be to deliver a high-quality, reliable consolidated tape that provides a simplified, comprehensive, and low-cost view of market activity, benefiting a wide range of participants.

Of course, it’s a big jump from simply believing in the CT, to taking on responsibility for delivering and operating it. However, together with Aquis, we believe we possess the key assets and capabilities needed to deliver one of the most important infrastructure projects the EU has embarked on in many years.

Why You Should Back SimpliCT

• Independent, Unconflicted and Trusted: We believe in the consolidated tape and the benefits it will bring to EU capital markets. The goal is to enhance the competitiveness of EU equity markets and attract global capital flows by increasing the visibility of European issuers both within Europe and internationally, while making European markets simpler and cheaper to access. Conversely, there's clearly a danger in appointing an operator owned by stakeholders who have bitterly opposed its introduction.
• Architects of Pan-European Solutions: We have a shared commitment and strong track record in developing successful pan-European solutions, which help investors to think of the European equities market as a single, investable universe – which is the vision of the EU’s Capital Markets Union project. We operate the two largest pan-European trading venues and, through Cboe, the largest equities APA reporting service, regulated under the same regime that will apply to the CT. We will be the largest contributors of data to the tape, with more than half of all EU equity trades either traded on or reported to Cboe and Aquis.
• Proven Technical Expertise: We are both recognised for our cutting-edge, reliable and robust technological capabilities, which we continuously improve by leveraging the latest advancements. We already receive and consolidate data from other exchanges to create real-time data for our internal use - ensuring a fast time-to-market for a CT. And we have a global data distribution infrastructure and extensive experience with data licensing that is considerably less restrictive than other exchanges.
• Industry-led Approach: Everything we have done to date has been built on close collaboration with European market participants, with the aim of benefiting issuers and end investors. SimpliCT would be adopting the same approach, working in partnership with the industry on the tape’s design through its advisory committee and other forums. SimpliCT’s vision is of a CT that meets industry needs with a fair commercial and governance framework for both data consumers and contributors, ensuring the CTP’s long-term commercial viability.
• Complementary Partners: SimpliCT’s founders are strong and complementary partners and would be well-equipped to operating the CT by bringing the strengths, best practices and capabilities of both firms to the table. We are also strategically aligned as positive disruptors, having long advocated for and actively fostered competition in equity trading. Both firms have strong reputations for client service, innovation and technical delivery of cost-efficient, scalable, and reliable services.

Next Steps

Now, the hard work really begins as we formalise the company, assign resources to the project, choose an industry advisory committee and explore a formal bid.

We look forward to your support over the coming months and please do reach out if you would like to learn more about the initiative or support us in any way.

We want to hear from market participants, infrastructure partners and vendors who share our vision and ambition, and who want to contribute alongside us.