The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
is investigating whether the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG)
and the landlord of the London Stock Exchange (LSE) data centre
building have hindered competition for low latency connectivity
services (LLCS) between certain trading
venues.
Currently, only LSEG can use the
rooftop of the data centre building for radio equipment used for
LLCS. To address our competition concerns, LSEG and the landlord
have proposed to offer equal access to the rooftop to
others.
The FCA's competition
investigations
LLCS providers build and operate high
speed connections between trading venues, which allow trading
firms to process trades very quickly. Offering very fast
connections is key to competition, and to maximise the speed of
their connections providers must be able to place radio units
close to trading venues.
The FCA's investigations under
competition law relate to the supply of LLCS between the LSE
trading venue in London and two other trading venues in the UK:
Cboe Europe and ICE. Currently, LSEG has exclusive rights to
locate radio units on the rooftop of the data centre building. We
are concerned that these rights and LSEG's rooftop policy at the
LSE trading venue prevent rival LLCS providers from installing
equipment on the rooftop, favouring LSEG's own LLCS and so
hindering competition.
The firms'
commitments:
To address our concerns, LSEG and the
landlord have proposed:
-
to end LSEG's exclusive rights to
the rooftop. In future, LSEG will only use part of that space
for its equipment.
-
to make an equivalent space on the
rooftop available to third parties, on a fair and reasonable
basis.
Our
consultation
We provisionally consider that the
commitment proposals address our competition concerns. We are
consulting on them before reaching a final decision on whether to
accept them and close the investigations accordingly. Further
details are set out in our Notice of Intention to Accept
Commitments.
The consultation runs from 11am on 5
September 2025 to 5pm on 29 September 2025. Any person wishing to
comment on the proposed commitments should email: CA98.2023.02@fca.org.uk.
Further
information:
-
In investigations under the
Competition Act 1998 (CA98), a firm under investigation can
offer commitments (i.e. binding promises relating to its future
conduct) to address the FCA's concerns. The FCA has discretion
on whether to accept commitments. If the FCA proposes to do so,
it must be satisfied that the commitments offered address its
competition concerns.
-
Under the CA98, we must consult
third parties that are likely to be affected by the commitments
before deciding whether to accept them or
not.
-
The FCA has reached no view,
provisional or otherwise, on whether competition law has been
breached. Offering commitments does not amount to a breach of
competition law, or an admission of infringement by those under
investigation, and the parties have made no such admission in
this case.
