4th June 2024-Technology brings new opportunities and advantages to the financial markets, however, issues emerge from time to time. In this regard, financial markets occasionally witness technical glitches.
Yesterday, the NYSE faced a technical issue in early trading hours where various stock trading activities were halted briefly. The exchange informed investors that the problem was related to limit-up and limit-down price bands—a mechanism designed to combat market volatility. Price bands are set at a percentage level above and below the stock’s average price to prevent rapid price movements from impeding the normal course of the market.
Well-known companies such as Berkshire Hathaway, Barrick Gold, and NuScale were among the stocks affected by the issue. Berkshire appeared to trade at a 99% discount for a brief period. NuScale Power and Barrick Gold both displayed prices down 98%.
While the issue was fixed after the rolling out of a new software release was believed to be behind the glitch, it underscores the critical aspect of technology in financial markets and the importance of a solid understanding of the technological solutions that are put in place. This is particularly the case as faster technological changes become the norm as financial markets move to T+1 settlement and AI takes a larger place in practice.