This article is authored by John Stead, Director of Sales Enablement & Marketing at smartTrade
The ACI World Congress (June 19-20, 2025) returned to its birthplace for its 70th anniversary, revealing an FX market at a pivotal moment. The conference, framed by ACI FMA Chairman Stephane Malrait’s reminder of the industry’s foundational motto, “My word is my bond,” explored how to maintain trust while navigating a fundamental reshaping driven by artificial intelligence, digital assets, and a seismic macroeconomic rebalancing.
The AI Co-Pilot Has Arrived
Market “electronification” has entered a new, more intelligent phase. The focus has decisively shifted from simply automating execution to leveraging AI for sophisticated analysis. Instead of staring at multiple screens, the modern goal is to use technology to create a single, personalized view of aggregated liquidity.
Panels confirmed the industry is now focused on measurable ROI from AI, with targeted “agentic” AI that automates end-to-end processes becoming the standard. For traders, the message was clear: AI is not a replacement but a powerful assistant. It is a tool that displaces “mental thought, but not intelligence,” processing vast alternative datasets to provide a richer dashboard for human decision-makers. As one panellist put it, AI won’t take your job, but “somebody using it will.”
Digital Assets: From Crypto to TradFi Integration
The conversation around digital assets has matured significantly, moving beyond speculation to the practical tokenization of real-world assets. This new ecosystem is being built on regulated stablecoins and the looming presence of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs).
Europe’s MiCA regulation provides a key “confidence fund framework,” but a sense of urgency was palpable. Banque de France’s Deputy Governor, Denis Beau, warned against the risk of non-European players dominating the space and stressed the Eurosystem’s push for a wholesale CBDC to ensure a secure settlement asset. This aligns perfectly with the FX Global Code’s renewed focus on mitigating settlement risk. In a tokenized world where any two assets can be traded as a pair, the FX community’s expertise is more critical than ever.
The Great Macro Rebalancing
A strong consensus emerged from macro discussions: the era of US asset exceptionalism is waning, triggering a multi-year global portfolio rebalancing. The starting point is that investors “collectively own too many US assets,” a position now being questioned due to US policy volatility and debt concerns.
This shift is creating opportunities elsewhere, with Europe and Emerging Markets drawing new interest from international investors seeking to diversify. EM, in particular, was described as “very lean, very clean” after years of investor outflows, now looking attractive with high real interest rates. Panellists advised a focus on robust portfolio construction and options, as traditional asset correlations can no longer be relied upon.
Upholding the Code in a New Era
Tying these themes together was the FX Global Code. Its latest evolution focuses on enhancing data transparency and instilling a “thorough understanding” of settlement risk—a crucial update for a market facing new assets and technologies. The Global FX Committee (GFXC) is now looking ahead, recognizing that the Code must continue to evolve to address the challenges posed by AI and tokenization.
The ACI World Congress made it clear that the FX industry is navigating a fundamental restructuring. Success will require both a mastery of new tools and an unwavering commitment to the principles of trust and integrity.
A sincere thank you to the global ACI committee for organising such an excellent and thought-provoking event. We very much look forward to continuing these important conversations at the next ACI World Congress in Ghana.
If you would like to know how smartTrade Technologies can help you stay ahead of the trends in trading and payments, get in touch to learn more about our end-to-end solutions.
For additional insights from the panel discussion ‘FX eCommerce FX Digitalisation… What Next?’ attended by our Director of Sales Enablement and Marketing, read John’s panel takeaways here.