New Technology Launchpad: KRX Paves the Way for Market Upgrade

During the recent long holiday, when most businesses were closed, the IT engineers at major securities companies such as SSI, VNDirect, and Yuanta were still working hard day and night. The goal was nothing more than to ensure that the company's trading system operated smoothly when integrated with the KRX platform - the new technology infrastructure system of the entire market.

IT engineers at many securities companies are working around the clock to upgrade and synchronize the KRX system.

At SSI, online trading services such as iBoard Web, iBoard Pro App, and account opening website are all temporarily suspended for upgrading. A company representative said: “We are taking advantage of the holiday to speed up system synchronization. This is an important preparation step to accompany the transformation of the entire market.”

Sharing the same view, VNDirect Securities Company announced the temporary suspension of all trading, account opening, deposit and withdrawal functions until 0:00 on May 5. Mr. Dinh Quang Hinh - Head of Macro and Market Strategy Department of VNDirect commented: "The official operation of the KRX system not only brings a more modern technology platform, but also an opportunity for the Vietnamese market to move closer to the goal of being upgraded to an emerging market by FTSE and MSCI" .

The KRX system, jointly deployed by the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange, will replace the entire old technology infrastructure currently operating at HoSE, HNX and the Vietnam Securities Depository Center (VSDC). According to experts, KRX is superior in terms of order processing speed, the ability to receive large volumes of transactions and providing real-time monitoring tools.

“KRX is a prerequisite for Vietnam to deploy advanced financial products such as short selling, T+0 trading, and automated algorithms - essential factors to improve market transparency and efficiency,” Ms. Le Thi Thanh Tam - Director of Digital Product Development at SSI analyzed.

The implementation of the KRX system on May 5, 2025 is expected to bring the Vietnamese stock market closer to its goal of upgrading from a frontier market to an emerging market.

However, KRX also comes with many changes that investors need to quickly adapt to. Specifically, ATO/ATC orders are no longer prioritized as before, modified orders can only change one criterion (price or volume), and the foreign room level will be deducted immediately when the order arrives at the floor instead of after it is matched.

Not only changing software, many securities companies have invested heavily in technology infrastructure in the past 2 years. According to Mr. Huynh Minh Tuan - Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of APG Securities: "The company has spent nearly 100 billion VND to invest in the initial phase of the technology system, and at the same time plans to increase charter capital to more than 3,200 billion VND to expand financial capacity, take advantage of opportunities from KRX and upgrade the market" .

At Yuanta Vietnam, Mr. Nguyen The Minh - Director of Research & Development for individual customers said that the IT department is working throughout the holiday. "This event is a turning point in terms of technical infrastructure, opening up a large space for both the market and securities companies to improve products and services."

In addition to technical factors, the KRX system also contributes to improving market sentiment. According to Mr. Dinh Quang Hinh, domestic investor sentiment is recovering thanks to a series of positive signals from the international community (such as the reduction of US-China tensions) and the steadfastness of the Fed Chairman.

Mr. Hinh predicted: “If it overcomes the resistance zone of 1,240 - 1,241 points, VN-Index can aim for the target zone of 1,260 - 1,270 points. Positive first quarter business results from the VN30 group, banking, electricity and retail will continue to be the support.”

However, in the context of the market still having potential risks, experts recommend that investors should only hold a moderate proportion of stocks, prioritize groups with good fundamentals, and limit the use of margin.

The KRX system is not only a technological upgrade, but also a driving force for comprehensive reform of the Vietnamese stock market. In the context of increasingly fierce regional competition, the fact that securities companies “work across the board” is not simply a technical matter, but also demonstrates the spirit of proactive change, accompanying the long-term development roadmap of the national financial market.

Source: https://thoibaonganhang.vn/be-phong-cong-nghe-moi-krx-mo-duong-nang-hang-thi-truong-163638.html