ISLA Americas Operations & Technology Summit 2026

Leaders from the ISLA Americas Operations and Technology Committee set the stage for two days focused on execution, resilience, and transformation in securities finance. As regulatory demands, market structure changes, and technology modernization accelerate, operations and post-trade teams face growing complexity and risk. This session highlights the priorities that will define success in 2026 and beyond—and where collective industry action is essential to deliver scalable, resilient operating models.

ISLA Americas Operations and Technology Working Group leaders address the most persistent operational challenges facing the industry, including agent lender disclosure, corporate actions processing, extended trading hours, and system resiliency. As volumes, automation, and regulatory expectations increase, inconsistent standards and fragmented workflows create real cost and risk. This session provides an update on active initiatives and shows how coordinated industry effort can reduce exceptions, improve data quality, and strengthen the operational foundation of securities finance. 

Artificial Intelligence, Digital assets, blockchain, and distributed ledger technology are beginning to influence settlement models, collateral mobility, and data transparency in securities finance. Operations and technology teams must understand not just the opportunity, but the integration, control, and regulatory challenges these technologies introduce. This session explores where real use cases are emerging, what remains experimental, and how firms can begin preparing their operating models without overextending resources. 

As securities finance becomes more interconnected, cyber risk has evolved from an IT issue into an enterprise-wide operational threat. This session examines how failures in interoperability, access controls, or third-party dependencies can cascade across firms and market infrastructure. Panelists will share practical approaches for aligning operations, technology, risk, and compliance teams to strengthen defenses, manage vendor risk, and respond effectively when incidents occur. 

An opportunity to connect with peers, speakers, and to continue discussions from the opening sessions.

Market participants and technology providers explore how interoperability, standardization, and partnership are reshaping the securities finance lifecycle—from pre-trade and execution through post-trade processing and regulatory compliance. The discussion will focus on reducing operational friction, improving exception management, and strengthening resiliency as firms rely more heavily on vendor ecosystems. Panelists will also examine how institutions can better govern technology partnerships to ensure scalability, control, and regulatory readiness.

As the securities lending industry transforms, operations, post-trade, and technology teams face unprecedented talent challenges. This session will explore how firms can build a resilient workforce through planning succession, targeted skill development, and upskilling for emerging technologies and regulatory demands. Panelists will discuss strategies to attract the next generation of professionals and ensure institutions are prepared to meet evolving market needs while retaining critical institutional knowledge. 

With evolving global regulations and ongoing market infrastructure changes, institutions face complex challenges across balance sheet management, operations, post-trade, and technology. This session will provide a forward-looking view of how deregulation initiatives and geopolitical developments under the current administration are shaping the securities lending landscape. Panelists will highlight the operational and strategic adjustments firms must consider remaining compliant, resilient, and competitive in a rapidly changing environment. 

DTCC’s transformation roadmap covering mandatory autopartials, enhanced prematching capabilities, and the growing use of asset tokenization is set to reshape securities lending, financing, and collateral operations. What are the implications for inventory management, settlement efficiency, system interfaces, and collateral mobility, highlighting the operational, technology, and balancesheet considerations firms must prioritize over the next year? Attendees will gain actionable insights on aligning their institutions with these market infrastructure changes and preparing for the most critical impacts. 

A forward-looking view of developing securities lending markets, including Saudi Arabia, Spain, Brazil, Mexico, and Nuam. Panelists will examine the unique regulatory requirements, market infrastructure, and operational challenges in each region, highlighting how firms must adapt to launch and scale effectively. Attendees will gain insights into prioritizing resources, aligning technology and operations, and anticipating market changes to succeed in these evolving environments.

An opportunity to connect with peers, speakers, and to continue discussions from the opening sessions.

With multiple structural initiatives underway—including U.S. central clearing, DTCC modernization, FED ACAP, digital exchanges, expanded CCP offerings, and the proposal for extended trading—operations and technology teams face intense pressure to deliver change with limited resources. This session focuses on how firms can assess impact, prioritize initiatives, and avoid duplicative or misaligned efforts. Panelists will share practical frameworks for decision-making in an environment where everything feels critical—but not everything can be done at once.

Discussion will focus on strategic approaches to innovation, risk management, and market efficiency, with insights into how these trends—including the proposal for extended trading—affect operations, post-trade, and technology functions. Panelists will offer guidance on the key areas professionals should prioritize in the year ahead to drive efficiency, resilience, and alignment across front, middle, and back-office operations.

Committee chairs summarize two days of groundbreaking discussions into an actionable industry roadmap. Participants can help chart the next chapter for securities finance—discover how your expertise and involvement can directly influence standards, unlock new opportunities, and propel the entire sector forward. Leave inspired, empowered, and ready to make a lasting impact alongside the industry’s brightest minds—this is your moment to turn insight into action.