The Australian Securities and Investments Commission is paving the way for alternative stock market operator Chi-X Australia to enter the market to directly compete with the Australian Securities Exchange by the October or November.

The Australian corporate regulator, ASIC, released its timetable for the introduction of market competition and released a summary of the intended market integrity rule framework that would apply.

ASIC Commissioner Shane Tregillis said, “Industry has told us it wants a timetable and an early indication of the regulatory framework in order to plan and allocate resources. The feedback is that at least six months is needed from when ASIC issues its final market integrity rules for competition.”

SEE TOP STORIES FROM THE WDM CONTENT NETWORK

* New Kid on the Block: Chi-X Has Arrived
* Australia's Top Commercial Law Firms
* How to Make Australians Super Confident
* Check out the latest issue of Business Review Australia!

The ASIC said it intends to issue the final market integrity rules for competition through a handbook that will be released in April 2011. ASIC is also warning that that market operators and participants need to prepare for a multi-market environment, including new operating rules and system changes by both the ASX and Chi-X for simultaneously halting trading, for use of common stock and broker identifiers and for the sharing of certain data.

Chi-X, owned by Japanese investment group Nomura, will also need to connect to market participants, CHESS, data vendors and ASIC for the provision of real-time order and trade data for surveillance purposes.

In response, the ASX issued a statement saying, “ASX is well positioned to operate within the proposed competitive environment, as well as to offer new products and services to its customers and new market operators.”

Learn more about Chi-X from this video.