Helen Lofthouse

ASX is pleased to announce that it has entered into a binding agreement to sell 100% of its interest in Yieldbroker Pty Limited (Yieldbroker) to a wholly owned subsidiary of Tradeweb Markets LLC (Tradeweb) (Proposed Transaction).

Helen Lofthouse, ASX’s Managing Director and CEO, said: “We believe this transaction will deliver substantial benefits to the Australian market through Yieldbroker and Tradeweb leveraging each other’s innovative trading solutions and deep industry experience.

“ASX has been a shareholder of Yieldbroker since 2014 and, given the relationship built over the years between the two organisations, ASX will continue to work closely with new owner Tradeweb to help foster long term growth and solutions for customers in the Australian fixed income market.”

ASX owns approximately 43% of Yieldbroker. The remaining shares are owned by a number of domestic and international banks and current and former Yieldbroker employees. ASX expects to realise approximately A$55m (after estimated transaction costs) under the terms of the Proposed Transaction, and the current carrying value of its interest in Yieldbroker is approximately A$30m.

ASX will recognise a reversal of prior year impairment losses of approximately A$25m after tax as a result of the Proposed Transaction for the financial year ending 30 June 2023. This gain will be classified as a significant item in ASX’s financial reporting framework. The proceeds of the sale will be retained by ASX to support the ongoing operations of the business.

Completion of the Proposed Transaction remains subject to a number of conditions, including regulatory approvals.

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ASX Managing Director and CEO, Helen Lofthouse, said: “Tim is a highly skilled technology transformation executive who brings to ASX more than 25-years’ experience in business and technology roles across Australian financial services.

“I am pleased to be making this announcement after a competitive global search with very high quality candidates. Tim’s deep expertise in technology and project execution in the financial services industry will be invaluable as ASX looks to contemporise its technology and deliver critical market infrastructure.”

Mr Whiteley was appointed to lead the ASX’s CHESS Replacement Solution Design work in November 2022 following the Group’s decision to reassess its CHESS replacement project.

Ms Lofthouse continued: “Importantly, Tim’s appointment as CIO provides continuity of technology leadership for CHESS replacement.

“The CHESS Replacement Solution Design team will continue to be led by Tim while he puts in place a new leadership team structure for the CHESS replacement program. As CIO, he will also have accountability for delivery of the technical aspects of the CHESS replacement program.”

Prior to joining ASX, Mr Whiteley held positions at Westpac and Commonwealth Bank, leading large enterprise-wide technology transformation projects.

Today’s announcement follows the 17 March announcement that ASX would create a dedicated Technology division, splitting the Group Executive, Technology and Data, and CIO role.

Dan Chesterman continues as Group Executive, Technology and Data, responsible for maturing ASX’s enterprise data capability and growing ASX’s customer-facing Technology and Data business – ASX’s fastest growing business.

Ms Lofthouse added: “I would like to thank Dan for his considerable efforts to manage what has effectively been two significant executive roles.

“This change will enable Dan and his high performing team to focus their energy on growing new areas of data and technology innovation.”

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The new CIO role will report directly to CEO Helen Lofthouse and will focus on ensuring system resilience across ASX, and the delivery of multi-year technology transformation programs.

The creation of a separate technology division will also enable current Group Executive, Technology and Data and CIO, Dan Chesterman to apply his full focus to leading the customer-facing Technology and Data business. This is ASX’s fastest-growing business, and Dan will continue to focus on important strategic initiatives such as expanding customer access to ASX’s rich data sets.

Ms Lofthouse said: “ASX operates multiple areas of critical market infrastructure for the region, and this additional role will provide further breadth and depth in this key area underpinning our business.

“The change creates a single point of senior executive focus and accountability for delivering ASX’s enterprise-wide technology renewal program, while also providing focused leadership for our Technology and Data business which is charged with maturing ASX’s enterprise data capability and growing ASX’s technical and data products and services.

“It also provides additional scope and bandwidth for Dan Chesterman and the team to focus their efforts on data and technology innovation, and expanding enterprise data capability across data science and analytics, information services, data governance and the ASX data platform.”

There are no changes to the delivery of ASX’s CHESS replacement solution design, which continues to be led by our dedicated technology transformation Project Director Tim Whiteley, who reports directly to the CEO.

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Helen Lofthouse

Helen Lofthouse, Managing Director and CEO of ASX said: “Although Australia is a prosperous country with a well-performing education system, a recent study by the University of Newcastle found that more than one-third of Australian adults are financially illiterate, with the rate even higher for women and young adults.

“This is concerning given that the study also found that financial literacy has a significant impact on a person’s general wellbeing and overall life satisfaction. Clearly, more work needs to be done to bridge this knowledge gap.”

Ringing the opening bell was Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services, the Hon Stephen Jones. Mr Jones said: “Financial literacy is one of the best ways Australians can protect themselves and their money. Scammers and fraudsters prey on uncertainty and doubt. Arming yourself with a few basic facts and techniques can make a huge difference.”

In support of World Investor Week, all of ASX’s educational resources for investors can be found on a dedicated webpage.

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