LSEG uses Azure to enhance trading connectivity network, enabling scale and growth

LSEG’s Autex Trade Route (ATR) platform powers global electronic trading, connecting 1,000-plus buy-side firms to more than 600 brokers. But LSEG’s longstanding on-premises infrastructure constrained its functionality and scalability.

LSEG migrated ATR to Microsoft Azure, which reduced infrastructure costs and enabled faster, lower-cost global expansion, freeing up resources to focus on innovation and customer solutions.

After migrating to Azure, ATR handled a 400% volume spike with zero impact. LSEG spun up a new hub in Singapore in just four weeks and is now positioned to unlock data insights and deliver new services even more quickly than before.

Each day, global financial institutions rely on FIX—the Financial Information eXchange protocol—to power electronic trading. As the global standard, FIX enables buy-side firms, brokers, and exchanges to communicate trade orders and confirmations instantly and reliably. It’s the foundational engine behind institutional markets.

At the heart of this ecosystem is LSEG’s Autex Trade Route (ATR) platform, one of the world’s largest FIX connectivity networks. ATR connects more than 1,000 buy-side firms to over 600 brokers, facilitating 4 billion transactions daily. But until recently, this critical infrastructure was running on longstanding on-premises infrastructure that was increasingly difficult to maintain and scale.

“We made the decision to invest in our infrastructure to modernize our platforms and enable us to deliver growth opportunities at scale,” says Holden Sibley, Head of Investment Management and Execution Solutions at LSEG.

A strategic shift to the cloud

The decision to migrate ATR to Microsoft Azure was driven by a clear need: to modernize a business-critical platform without disrupting the global trading activity that it supports. “This was about building a foundation for innovation, scalability, and resilience,” says Mike Maloney, Proposition Director for Buy-Side Trading at LSEG.

The migration was a joint effort between LSEG, Microsoft, and Rapid Addition, the vendor providing the FIX platform technology that underpins the solution. Together, the teams re-architected the platform to run natively in Azure, using Azure Dedicated Hosts to maintain control over maintenance windows and help ensure uninterrupted service. “We had to preserve the long-running TCP connections that are essential for low-latency trading,” says Amresh Deshmukh, Global Head of Workflows Technology at LSEG.

The move also delivered measurable cost and efficiency benefits. By eliminating the need for physical datacenters and hardware procurement, LSEG reduced both capital and operational expenses. The global footprint of Azure allowed the team to spin up new FIX hubs in weeks instead of months. “We can now meet client demand in any region without the cost and complexity of building out on-premises infrastructure,” says Maloney.

Now that Microsoft is primarily responsible for infrastructure management, LSEG’s teams have been able to redirect engineering resources toward product development and customer-focused innovation. They also invest fewer resources in supporting customers on aging on-premises platforms.

“Within weeks of the ATR platform being migrated to Azure, high market volatility saw order volumes surge 400%. It was an unexpected early test of the new environment, but there were no incidents or outages in the period. That was an important proof point, and one that gives us great confidence moving forward.”

Holden Sibley, Head of Investment Management and Execution Solutions, LSEG

Resilience, reach, and readiness for what’s next

The migration was completed in early 2025, just in time for a real-world stress test. “Within weeks of the ATR platform being migrated to Azure, high market volatility saw order volumes surge 400%. It was an unexpected early test of the new environment, but there were no incidents or outages in the period. That was an important proof point, and one that gives us great confidence moving forward,” reports Sibley.

The move to Azure has also unlocked new business opportunities. When a major broker requested a new FIX hub in Singapore, LSEG was able to deliver in just four weeks—something that would previously have taken months and significant capital investment. “We can now meet clients where they are, quickly and efficiently,” says Deshmukh.

The migration also positions LSEG to harness the vast data flowing through ATR. “We can now use our high-quality, expertly curated data to enable analytics, power insights, and create new services for our clients,” explains Sibley.

A blueprint for the future

With ATR now running on Azure, LSEG is extending the platform’s capabilities across its broader ecosystem. “This is just the beginning,” says Deshmukh. “We’re leveraging FIX connectivity across the organization, creating a shared infrastructure that’s more efficient and scalable.”

“Moving a platform this sensitive to the cloud was not easy, but it’s worth it,” says Maloney. “With the support of Microsoft and Rapid Addition, we can shift focus from maintaining legacy systems to delivering forward-thinking, client-centric solutions. By stabilizing the foundation, we’re now better equipped to innovate and solve real client problems—proactively and at scale.”

“With the support of Microsoft and Rapid Addition, we can shift focus from maintaining legacy systems to delivering forward-thinking, client-centric solutions. By stabilizing the foundation, we’re now better equipped to innovate and solve real client problems—proactively and at scale.”

Mike Maloney, Proposition Director for Buy-Side Trading, LSEG

For LSEG, the migration of ATR to Azure wasn’t just a technical achievement; it was a strategic transformation. “We’ve built a foundation we can innovate on,” says Sibley. “And that’s what will keep us ahead in a constantly evolving market.”

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