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From fax machines to tokenisation: Leadership in post-trade and securities services providers

By Michael Barrington-Hibbert
September 2025

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When my colleague Matt asked me to reflect on how leadership has evolved over the past 20 years across post-trade and securities services providers, I thought: Where do I even begin? From dial-up to digital assets, from paper-heavy back offices to AI-powered platforms — it’s been a ride.

Back in time

Let me take you back to early 2000s Canary Wharf — the spiritual home of blue shirts, sharp suits, and leadership archetypes forged in the fires of operational mastery. Back then, the typical industry leader was an operations heavyweight: someone who could recite settlement cut-off times in their sleep, navigate SWIFT messages blindfolded, and manage literal armies of staff spread across floors that buzzed like trading pits.

People management wasn’t a skill; it was a survival tactic. Fortified by gallons of builder’s tea, these leaders knew where every team member sat, what they had for lunch, and probably which database they broke before 9am.

Their leadership style was built on deep operational credibility, grounded in process, precision, and people oversight. Success was measured by how smoothly the engine ran, how well the teams were mobilised, and how efficiently the paperwork moved from point A to B.

Identifying today’s leaders

Fast forward to 2025, and the picture is, well, quite different.

The new wave of leadership across post-trade and securities services looks more like platform architects than process overseers. They’re fluent in digital transformation, comfortable talking about blockchain tokenisation before their first oat milk flat white and casually drop phrases like “interoperability” and “smart contracts” in Monday morning meetings.

Today's senior leaders focus on strategic infrastructure, enterprise-wide digitalisation, and ecosystem thinking. They aren’t just running businesses, they’re redesigning them. Their roles are equal parts transformation strategist, technology champion, and cultural catalyst.

Instead of walking the floor with a clipboard, they’re leading digital asset pilots, hosting innovation roundtables, and working with regulators to navigate the next frontier of finance. Their teams are leaner, more agile, and increasingly tech driven. The question has shifted from “how many people do you manage?” to “how are you reimagining what’s possible?”

Defining modern leadership in securities services

1. Digitally native thinking

Leadership is no longer about knowing every function — it's about knowing how to reimagine them.

2. Tech-first strategy

The move from mainframes to modular platforms has brought CTOs and innovation heads into the heart of C-suite decision-making.

3. Culture over control

Empathetic, purpose-led leadership has overtaken hierarchical command-and-control. Influence now trumps authority.

20 years ago, post-trade and securities services leaders were process protectors - today, they’re platform pioneers. The toolkit has changed, the tempo has accelerated, and the talent profile has evolved but the mission remains the same: deliver trust, transparency, and transformation in an industry that never sleeps.

And if you're still wondering whether your legacy knowledge of ISO 15022 can get you through a meeting on tokenised assets — maybe it's time to upgrade more than your tech.


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