SIX Annual Report 2023

SIX Annual Report 2023

The diversified business model of SIX again proved its value in a demanding
environment.

Highlights of 2023

SIX extended its positive operational performance, grew its global presence and partner network, and continued investing in new technologies and innovations.

Stable Costbase

Operating expenses increased by a modest 1.5%, below inflation.

Digital Invoices

Half of Swiss households were using the eBill platform to pay and manage electronic invoices.

Capital Increases

Companies listed on SIX Swiss Exchange raised a total of CHF 8.3 billion, 18.6% more than in 2022.

Growing CSDs

Average deposit volumes were up 3.3% in Switzerland and 2.5% in Spain.

Key Figures

CHF 1,526.0 mn CHF 1,526.0 mn
Operating Income
CHF 413.4 mn CHF 413.4 mn
EBITDA
4,024 4,024
Employees (FTE)
CHF 181.1 mn CHF 181.1 mn
Adjusted Group Net Result
CHF -1,006.2 mn CHF -1,006.2 mn
Group Net Result
A A
S&P Rating
CHF 5.20 CHF 5.20
Dividend per Share

Letter to Shareholders

In these challenging times, the core mission of SIX takes on particular importance: the smooth settlement of securities transactions and payments.

Thomas Wellauer, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Jos Dijsselhof, CEO.

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Dear Readers

In the past year, we were faced with multiple events of global significance that not only had an impact on the business performance of SIX but also very much affected us at a personal level. We witnessed how war and armed conflict caused suffering to countless people. We also observed persistently high levels of inflation and a marked increase in key interest rates. In other words, the macroeconomic and political context remained complex and in constant flux.

In these challenging times, the core mission of SIX takes on particular importance: the smooth settlement of securities transactions and payments. These are critical to the proper functioning of the economy generally and, by extension, to economic stability in the markets in which we do business.

Positive Trend in Operational Performance and Strong Capital Position Despite Major Non-Cash Value Adjustments
Our diversified business model again proved its value in this demanding environment. We succeeded in extending the positive trend in our operational performance. For full-year 2023, we increased revenue by 3.5% at constant exchange rates and by 2.1% at reported rates. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) grew thanks to a stable cost base, to 413.4 million Swiss francs, up 6.7% at constant exchange rates and 4.0% at reported rates.

In the fourth quarter, we had to make two major non-cash value adjustments. The first, of 862.3 million Swiss francs, was prompted by the significant decline in the share price of Worldline. The second charge, again non-cash, was an impairment of goodwill of 339.6 million Swiss francs attributed to BME Group, reflecting higher discount rates and lower trading volumes in Spain and in Europe as a whole. Due to these value adjustments, EBIT was –975.0 million Swiss francs, and the Group net result –1,006.2 million Swiss francs.

The value adjustments did not impact the strong free cash flow generated in 2023, and the capital position of SIX remains strong. For the 2023 business year, the Board of Directors proposes a dividend of CHF 5.20 per share, an increase of 2.0% from the previous year (2022: CHF 5.10).

International Presence Strengthened, Innovations Expanded
While the Exchanges business unit recorded lower trading volumes for the second year in a row, we are pleased to report sustained demand for new listings in the Global Depositary Receipts (GDR) program and the BME Growth segment in 2023. Highlights in the main market included the listings of the Novartis spin-off Sandoz and, in a first for our exchanges, of a company formed from a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), R&S Group. In the Securities Services business unit, we further developed our international custody business. The interest rate environment led to higher interest income, which combined with the high repo volumes had a positive impact on earnings. In the Financial Information business unit, we successfully expanded our global footprint through a number of new partnerships with platform and distribution providers. Additional growth came from the performance of our Swiss indices and the launch of new indices, including ESG and crypto indices. In the Banking Services business unit, 2023 marked the launch of the new SIC5 platform pioneering instant payments in Switzerland. In the future, moreover, the Swiss National Bank plans to accept register certificates of collateralized mortgages as collateral for liquidity assistance in crisis situations. In doing so, the SNB will rely on the Terravis system owned and operated by SIX.

In December, the platform of our SIX Digital Exchange (SDX) was used to issue and settle bonds in a real wholesale CBDC – a global first. CBDC is short for central bank digital currency and refers to a digital currency issued and regulated by a country’s central bank. The successful issuance of bonds by the cantons of Basel- Stadt and Zurich is part of Project Helvetia Phase III, a joint endeavor of the Swiss National Bank and six commercial banks. The main objective of the project is to investigate potential applications of wholesale CBDC on financial infrastructure based on distributed ledger technology (DLT). This underscores the critical role of DLT-based SIX Digital Exchange (SDX) in driving innovation in Switzerland as a financial center. In addition to the SDX platform, the project, which runs until June 2024, uses further components of our value chain, notably the infrastructure of Swiss Interbank Clearing (SIC) and of SIX SIS, the central securities depository.

New Sustainability Reporting Obligations
Starting with their 2023 annual financial reporting, large and listed companies in Switzerland now also have non-financial reporting requirements to meet. In parallel, the EU began phasing in the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). We support all our listed companies in meeting the new reporting requirements. For more on these and further sustainability commitments, refer to our separate Sustainability Report. 

New Members on the Board of Directors and the Executive Board
Andreas E. F. Utermann, the chairman of the board of directors of Bank Vontobel AG and Vontobel Holding AG, Sven Holstenson, a managing partner with Pictet Group, and Roger Reist, a member of the executive board of Raiffeisen Switzerland, were newly elected to our Board of Directors at the annual general meeting on May 8, 2023.

In September, Bjørn Sibbern was appointed as Global Head of the Exchanges business unit and as a member of the SIX Executive Board with effect from January 1, 2024. A Danish citizen, Bjørn Sibbern has long international experience in the exchange business. He previously served in various international roles at Nasdaq, most recently as executive vice president and president of European markets.

Outlook
Our medium-term goal is to grow revenue by > 3% p.a. while also extending profitability gains. Looking at our cost base, we will continue to rely on measures to unlock cost synergies and deliver targeted cost efficiencies. Bolt-on acquisitions and partnering opportunities will further strengthen our portfolio.

For 2024, we expect the political and macroeconomic landscape to be similarly challenging for the economy and society as in the previous year. We are also currently witnessing the early stages of large-scale adoption of artificial intelligence (AI). Its rapid dissemination is a harbinger of the massive impact AI technology will have on job profiles, business models, and society. At SIX, our approach to AI is collaborative and cross-functional.

Given our ever-evolving business environment, we place an extra premium on ensuring financial market efficiency, stability, and security in our home markets of Switzerland and Spain, and on providing superior services for our clients now and in the future. We would like to take this opportunity to thank you – our shareholders, clients, business partners, and employees – for the trust you place in us and for our strong working relationship.

Yours faithfully

Dr. Thomas Wellauer, Chairman of the Board of Directors
Jos Dijsselhof, CEO

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Financial Review

SIX closed 2023 with solid operating results. The Group achieved a total operating income of 1.5 billion Swiss francs, representing growth of 2.1% – or 3.5% at constant exchange rates – versus the previous year. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) increased 4.0% to 413.4 million Swiss francs (6.7% at constant exchange rates), with an EBITDA margin of 27.1% (2022: CHF 397.7 mn, 26.6%). The Group net result was –1,006.2 million Swiss francs (2022: CHF 185.0 mn). Excluding value adjustments, the Group net result would have been 181.1 million Swiss francs, slightly less than last year. 

Get the full financial review.

Focus on Selected Topics

Exchange-Traded Funds: A Growing Asset Class

Sustainable ICT in the Age of Big Data

Social Media as a Means to Greater Youth Financial Literacy

The Rise of Digital Wallets and Wearables

Highlights from the Business

Bot Provides Wider Access to Corporate Actions Data

The SIX Bot released in November 2023 helps to speed up operational tasks by integrating into existing team workflows. Through simple requests it will return relevant corporate actions data. The SIX Bot follows the launch of the Corporate Action Calendar by SIX in September 2023, which allows clients to reliably track and monitor upcoming corporate actions events.

The First SPAC Listed on SIX Swiss Exchange

VT5 pioneered with the first Swiss SPAC (Special Purpose Acquisition Company) in December 2021. Two years later, a next milestone was reached where the so-called De-SPACing materialized in a business combination with R&S Group.

Clearing in the EU: Digital Assets Derivatives Segment

In September 2023, BME Clearing, the Spanish central counterparty, has successfully obtained regulatory approval from Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores to clear Bitcoin and Ethereum futures, denominated in US dollars under the EU regulatory framework.

Liquidity for Switzerland’s Banking System during Times of Crisis Thanks to Terravis

Liquidity against Mortgage Collateral (Liquidität gegen hypothekarische Sicherheiten, LGHS) makes a broad-based contribution to the stability and resilience of Switzerland’s banking system. The Swiss National Bank’s LGHS framework relies on Terravis, a platform from SIX that provides the infrastructure to standardize, harmonize, digitalize, and automate the complex processes involved in settling real estate transactions.

SIX Becomes First Exchange Operator to Offer Pan-European On-Exchange Trading for ETFs via Request for Quote

On December 4, 2023, SIX introduced a novel service extension to its segment for Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs), called Quote-on-Demand Europe (QOD Europe). In addition to over 1,700 tradable products listed at SIX Swiss Exchange, clients are now able to trade ETFs listed on other primary exchanges like the London Stock Exchange, Deutsche Börse, Euronext, Nasdaq OMX and Wiener Börse and more via ETF QOD Europe.

Pilot Issuance of Wholesale CBDC in Switzerland

SIX, the Swiss National Bank and six commercial banks, collaborate on a ground-breaking pilot focused on tokenized central bank money for financial institutions (referred to as wholesale central bank digital currency or wCBDC).

Strategy

Growth

The financial market landscape is undergoing a major transformation. Groundbreaking innovations are the driving forces, enabled by technologies like distributed ledger technology (DLT) and artificial intelligence (AI). SIX is one of a handful of companies positioned at the intersection of data, technology, and infrastructure. To stay competitive, SIX keeps its sights on continuous innovation, investment, and margin accretive growth.

Read more about the strategy of SIX.

 

Sustainability

SIX plays a central role as a financial market infrastructure and as a solutions provider. The position at the interface between financial markets and business enables SIX to help shape the transition to a sustainable economy. In 2023, SIX took important steps to bring its sustainability approach to the next level and strengthen the foundations for the future. A dedicated sustainability team was set up to steer sustainability activities across the entire organization.

Read more about how SIX puts sustainability into practice.

 

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