The 2026 securities finance forecast: From fragmentation to flow

As regulatory, technological, and market forces converge, securities finance is shifting from fragmentation to a state of seamless flow. In this article Darren Crowther, Head of Securities Finance Solutions at Broadridge shares how digital infrastructure, automation, and cross‑industry collaboration are unlocking new levels of transparency, efficiency, and competitiveness, with firms that embrace connectedness in 2026 will be those to lead the next phase of market innovation.

The crossroads of change: A turning point for securities finance

Over the past few years, securities finance has undergone one of the most rapid structural transformations in its history. The combination of regulatory reform, digital innovation, and macroeconomic volatility has fundamentally altered how liquidity, collateral, and data circulate across global markets.

By early 2025, roughly $3.2 trillion in securities lending balances and more than $15 trillion in global repo positions underpin daily market liquidity, according to ICMA and DataLend. These twin markets form the connective tissue of global capital markets and are now entering a period of digital acceleration that will redefine competitiveness and connectivity.

As we kick off 2026, the industry stands at a decisive inflection point. In previous cycles, innovation was often reactive, fueled by compliance deadlines or market dislocations. Now the energy is shifting. The tools, data models, and connectivity built for regulatory resilience are being repurposed to create competitive advantage. The conversation is no longer about keeping up with change; it is about using modernization to drive growth, transparency, and efficiency.

Institutions that harness modernization to create a seamless flow of collateral, information, and value will redefine capital mobility, making markets faster, more transparent and more efficient across  interconnected markets.

The market momentum: Forces reshaping finance in 2026  

Regulation as a catalyst for efficiency

In 2026, the Basel IV framework will be well into its implementation phase, with many jurisdictions calibrating national interpretations and completing transitional adjustments. Industry analyses through 2025 suggest Basel IV is lifting large‑bank capital requirements by 5–8 percent, sharpening the focus on balance‑sheet efficiency and high‑quality collateral. Efficient collateral mobility is no longer simply an operational objective, it is a source of regulatory and capital alpha.

Transparency requirements from SFTR continue to shape the industry.  Several years of reporting are now providing a valuable baseline for benchmarking and internal analysis. Firms that integrate regulatory and proprietary data sets are beginning to uncover insights that support more informed trade‑level funding and risk decisions.

. Sustainability‑related disclosure is evolving as regulators refine global standards around climate and social risk reporting. These frameworks are beginning to influence securities‑lending and repo practices, with counterparties assessing collateral for a broader range of factors, including credit quality, liquidity, and long‑term risk resilience. This shift is gradually shaping eligibility lists and pricing models through 2026.

Meanwhile, settlement acceleration is transforming operational risk. SIFMA’s 2025 assessment of North America’s move to T+1 found margin reductions of 30 percent, but also a  25% increase in intraday funding pressures. As other markets follow, firms must align funding, settlement, and collateral processes in near‑real time to maintain liquidity and compliance efficiency.

Fragmentation meets connectivity: The new market topology

The structure of the securities finance market continues to fragment while simultaneously interconnecting. Digital collateral networks and distributed ledger platforms have moved from concept to commercial reality. These venues allow counterparties to pledge, transfer, and recall assets in near real‑time, often across borders and asset classes.

Triparty agents are expanding interoperability, bringing data and margining consistency across custodians. “Repo‑as‑a‑service” models now allow a broader array of counterparties including corporates and pension funds to access balance sheet capacity through automated, rules‑based engines.

Cross‑border flows are also evolving. Regional liquidity pools are overlapping, driven by the need for collateral optimization across time zones. The result is a more dynamic, yet complex network where execution, collateral management, and settlement must synchronize digitally.

Technology as the accelerant: Infrastructure, insight and intelligence

The digital foundation is being laid

Tokenization is progressing from pilot initiatives to full production, enabling the representation of underlying securities or collateral on distributed ledgers. Broadridge research in 2025 found that around 67 percent of global institutions have DLT or tokenization programs moving toward production up from less than 40 percent two years earlier. Combined with smart contracts, tokenization allows instantaneous transfer of ownership and automated lifecycle events from margin calls to coupon payments without traditional reconciliation chains.

Parallel to this, digital identity frameworks are gaining traction. The ability to verify counterparties and assets on‑chain reduces friction and ensures data integrity across the ecosystem. Early blockchain‑based asset‑servicing pilots in Europe and Asia are demonstrating that digital issuance and settlement can coexist with established CSD models, creating a hybrid landscape where efficiency and regulatory oversight can both thrive.

From reactive to predictive: AI transforms collateral intelligence

Artificial intelligence and machine learning are now embedded in the daily management of collateral and liquidity. Industry benchmarks in 2025 show that predictive‑analytics tools have reduced intraday liquidity demands by 20-30percent and are markedly lowering manual processing requirements. These capabilities allow treasurers to pre‑position assets and forecast demand, transforming collateral management from reactive to predictive

Data harmonization underpins these advances. Standardized tax and normalized data flows enable algorithmic models to analyze exposure and funding patterns in real time. The outcome: better capital deployment, optimized inventory, and enhanced service for both counterparties and clients.

Interoperable automation: The connective tissue of finance

The new interface to this digital ecosystem is built on open APIs, FIX and ISO 20022 messaging, and distributed ledger registries that allow straight‑through data exchange from execution to settlement. Interoperability, long a theoretical aspiration is becoming the defining infrastructure characteristic of 2026.

Broadridge refers to this as interoperable automation, the capacity for market participants, custodians, and technology firms to interact through standardized workflows, regardless of legacy systems or asset class. It is the connective tissue that turns innovation into tangible business value.

Collateral reimagined: From constraint to competitive edge

Collateral is evolving from operational necessity into a strategic performance driver. Treasury and financing teams are building frameworks around collateral intelligence—the capacity to view holdings, obligations, and eligibility in a single, data‑rich environment.

With real‑time connectivity, collateral can be mobilized intraday rather than waiting for end‑of‑day sweeps, unlocking balance‑sheet efficiency and improving client responsiveness. Multi‑asset, multi‑venue collateral pools are expanding, firms are developing utilities that centralize inventory across securities lending, repo, and derivatives.

Earlier industry outlooks anticipated a steady rise in sustainability‑linked collateral activity across European securities‑lending markets. By 2026, progress has been uneven but noticeable, with some counterparties incorporating environmental and social attributes into eligibility criteria and pricing where data, mandates, or client objectives support it. Pricing frameworks are gradually adapting to recognise these factors, embedding sustainability considerations pragmatically into collateral valuation and economics.

Collaboration at scale: The industry model for 2026 and beyond

The traditional lines between repo, lending, and derivatives collateral management are rapidly dissolving. Shared data models and technology stacks are accelerating the rise of utilities that deliver standardized processes at scale.

Market participants increasingly recognize that not every function is a differentiator; standardization areas such as trade matching, reconciliation, and reporting creates room to focus resources on client insight and alpha generation. Managed services and modular platform models are becoming the dominant paradigm.

For Broadridge, the equation is clear: connectedness drives success. Technological connectedness enables interoperability; operational connectedness promotes efficiency; and strategic connectedness fosters collaboration.  firms that embrace all three dimensions will harness the full benefits of modernization while adapting seamlessly to ongoing change.

A growing ecosystem of partnerships reinforces this shift, as collaboration between banks, asset managers, custodians, and technology firms is producing shared architectures that no single entity could deliver alone. As these ecosystems mature, robust data‑governance standards will be as essential as technological performance to maintain trust across digital networks.

The road ahead: Turning complexity into opportunity

In 2026, securities finance will be characterized by greater transparency, data‑driven decision‑making, and operational interoperability. Markets will be move faster and operate with greater connectivity, yet heightened volatility will make participants more demanding in their expectations of real‑time insight and efficiency.

Participants that leverage digital infrastructure and advanced analytics to anticipate funding needs, integrate sustainability considerations, and harness automation will not merely comply with regulations, they will lead in performance, partnership, and client value.

The journey from fragmentation to flow is not only technological; it is cultural. It requires institutions to think in networks, not silos to design processes with openness, data sharing, and collaboration. Those who embrace that mindset will help shape a more resilient, efficient, and innovative market ecosystem.

The convergence of technology, regulation, and industry ambition is ushering in a new era for securities finance, one defined by connectedness and continuous progress. With digital tools and collaborative frameworks now firmly in place, the path ahead is one of growth, reinvention, and shared success.

Broadridge’s perspective is simple yet powerful: connectivity creates clarity. In an increasingly interconnected world, the ability to transform data into decisions and decisions into seamless execution will define the leaders of the next decade. As 2026 unfolds, the institutions that achieve true flow; of collateral, of information, of insight, will shape the future of securities finance.