FIX Trading Community has asked the FCA to distinguish genuinely accessible liquidity from technical trades when reforming UK equities data. Its announcement, posted on 20 October with a 19 October dateline, summarises responses to the regulator’s market-structure and consolidated-tape consultations.[1]
The recommendations classify liquidity by trading phase, execution mechanism and addressability, identify automated versus manual off-venue trades, and align UK trade flags with European conventions where practical. FIX also seeks standardised, machine-readable outage communications and arrangements for determining closing prices during disruptions.[1]
The underlying FCA framework is partly decided. July’s CP26/31 confirmed a tape combining completed-trade data with attributed best bids and offers. It separately consulted on including quotes from systematic internalisers, firms executing against their own capital outside trading venues. That distinction places FIX’s request in the remaining design work rather than reopening every core tape rule.[2][3]
CP26/30 also sets a broader context for interpreting trading volumes. The FCA says central order books remain important to price formation, but their market share alone is not a conclusive measure of market health. Its proposed monitoring covers spreads, depth, volatility and execution quality alongside volumes and activity at the close.[3]
For brokers comparing execution routes, turnover does not reveal which liquidity an order could reach, or when. More precise categories would improve the comparison, although a data feed still supplies information rather than an execution relationship.[3]
Sources & further reading
- UK equity reform recommendations FIX Trading Community · 20 Oct 2026 · Accessed 21 Oct 2026
- CP26/31: Equity consolidated tape Financial Conduct Authority · 31 Jul 2026 · Accessed 21 Oct 2026
- CP26/30: Equity transparency and market structure Financial Conduct Authority · 31 Jul 2026 · Accessed 21 Oct 2026