The outbreak of COVID-19 in late February of 2020 resulted in unanticipated, unprecedented, and prolonged turmoil upon U.S. Financial Markets. As the threat of COVID-19 imposed upon the health and well-being of the public, investor uncertainty proliferated.  Mass selloffs triggered by investor fear and associated market speculation has resulted in persistent market volatility that continues to stress current financial technology.

FIF is seeking to survey our members to better assess the impact of prolonged market volatility upon trading systems.  The results of our survey will serve as the empirical basis for a post-COVID-19 White Paper.  The White Paper will collate industry feedback and will be designed to conclude whether heightened system capacity and other BCP-related standards are required. Should your firm wish to contribute to this valuable exercise, please consider submitting this survey. *All responses will be kept confidential*

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* 1. Do you believe that the 2x systems capacity is rule sufficient? Did you firm exceed 2x systems capacity at any point during the crisis. If so, was bandwidth available sufficient without significant human intervention? If not, what was the impact on human and other technology resources?

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* 2. Do you believe that the 2x systems capacity standard should be increased following your firm’s experience in 2020?

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* 3. If your firm’s trading systems exceeded bandwidth capacity (i.e. ticker plants, OMS, FIX engine, etc.) during this crisis, did business disruptions result?

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* 4. If you required system enhancements during the crisis to meet volume loads, did your firm experience negative downstream impacts to technology and human resources?

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* 5. If your firm experienced systems stress resulting from sustained increase in trading volume and the associated spikes, what changes do you believe your firm will be required to implement to more efficiently respond to similar market conditions in the future?

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* 6. Do you believe the market events observed during the outbreak of COVID-19 requires the industry to undergo wholesale changes to capacity planning and systems design?

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* 7. Did your firm leverage guidance and best practice standards promulgated by the regulators before, during, and/or following the crisis?  If so, what recommendations and suggestions would you make to better improve the efficacy of regulatory guidance?

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* 8. Do you believe that enhancements to capacity planning standards, if required, should be driven by regulatory action?  If so, why? 

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