As NZX branch out into Futures, Chi-X pushes further into the Asia Pacific region and now the Singapore Stock Exchange's bid for A$8.4bn for the ASX hits the headlines, the fate of the Australian securities markets once again rests in the regulator's hands.

With the proposed combination of the ASX and SGX potentially taking place in Q2 2011, just shortly after Chi-X's entry into the market, both fragmentation and consolidation look to be on next year's agenda.

However, camps are split over SGX's bid for Australia's major exchange.

Although the collaboration could create a strong competitor to the likes of the Hong Kong and Shanghai exchanges, and counter government worries that SGX's growth could continually overshadow that of Australia if they remained in direct competition, skeptics of the deal cite the very real worry that the merger could leave Australia as merely a divisional office of the Singapore exchange.

Although the proposal is yet to receive the required approval from financial services minister Bill Shorten and the Foreign Investment Review Board, board members from both the ASX and SGX have already given their unanimous support for the move.

We are moving with the industry!

Hear how the story is unfolding and how it will affect your business as the major exchanges come together at Capital Markets Technology on 30 November & 1 December in Sydney.

Visit www.capitalmarketstechnology.com.au for more details.