NSE Implements New Trading Platform in 10 Weeks

Lagos, Nigeria: The new trading platform for the Nigeria Stock Exchange
(NSE) is expected to be delivered by the end of 2010. This is part of
the efforts to reposition the nation’s capital market. The regulatory
body, Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) has directed that a new
platform be acquired by NSE.

“We are targeting 10 weeks for the now for the delivery of the
platform. What we are targeting is that the new management would either
begin with new platform or get in installed shortly after assumption of
office,” says Ms. Arunma Oteh, Director General of SEC

Meanwhile, capital markets firms around the world are set to spend
$13.4 billion this year, across asset classes, on trading
infrastructures, according to a report from Tabb Group. The research
house expects 41% of spending on data servers, servers, storage and
networking will come from North America,

However, despite the costs and complexity created by meeting high
bandwidth, low latency and global reach requirements, the industry's
current data centre-centric server-to-server approach has actually
simplified underlying networks, says Tabb.

Less equipment, fewer hops and robust management tools are allowing
networks to actually flatten as they expand, claims Kevin McPartland,
senior analyst, Tabb, who argues that they can run beautifully "if
people don't get in the way".

"Switches are handling much of the work once left to routers. As a
result, Storage Area Networks are quickly becoming an integrated part
of Local Area Networks and lines between LANs and Wide Area Networks
are blurring. This is giving way to what Tabb calls the redefined Total
Area Network," says McPartland.

Using the Total Area Network, he says, network equipment and protocols
will be more standardised regardless of their function, and moving data
between computers will be seamless despite physical location or the
underlying data type.

However, although "tomorrow's flattened network will be simpler to
manage, knowing what to deploy, how to deploy it and what to think
about based on business needs will be ongoing concerns".

He concludes: "Unfortunately, there is no perfect architecture, but by
understanding the relationships between latency, bandwidth, scalability
and cost, the latest and greatest networking technology can underpin an
infrastructure that delivers the highest possible ROI. That technology
exists today; but since money never sleeps, neither can the men and
women designing the networks of tomorrow."