To transform the infrastructure behind its foreign-exchange (FX) trading platforms, Spark Systems modernized its systems using Nutanix, ensuring microsecond latency, greater agility, and lower costs.
Singapore-based FX trading platform Spark Systems has built a best-in-class eFX platform using its proprietary technology and strong system architecture. To support this, the company modernized its infrastructure by moving from a legacy 3-tier setup to Nutanix.
This shift brought major benefits: faster performance for high-frequency trading, quicker customer onboarding, lower IT costs, and no service disruptions. It also set the stage for future hybrid cloud adoption and AI-driven innovation, strengthening Spark’s edge in the FX market.
Real-time processing
Delivered microsecond latency for market-leading tick-to-trade ratios to support high-frequency trading
Raised customer service experience
Improved scalability to serve customers and internal teams faster
Increased IT efficiency and resource utilization
Eliminated the expense of SAN storage and doubled the number of servers in a single rack
We moved from a regular three-tier model to a compact Nutanix solution, at least doubling the number of servers in the same rack. And it’s been issue-free, which is a first probably in my career.
Spark Systems, based in Singapore, develops next-generation foreign-exchange (FX) trading platforms for tier-one banks, hedge funds, corporate treasuries, and retail traders. The company has datacenters co-located with the world’s leading FX trading hubs in London, New York, Singapore, and Tokyo. Since launching in 2016, the company has consistently doubled its trading volumes and revenues annually.
To maintain its edge, Spark Systems needed to modernize the infrastructure underpinning its software-as-a-service (SaaS) FX trading solutions. As operations continually scaled, the three-tier infrastructures across its datacenters were becoming increasingly complex to manage. The company wanted a flexible architecture that simplified management, improved scalability, reduced costs, complied with financial services regulations, and laid a foundation for future hybrid cloud setups.
Spark Systems decided to transition its datacenters to a Nutanix hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) based solution, extending a relationship that started in 2022, when the company successfully deployed Nutanix into its London datacenter. Chaitanya Peddada, chief operating officer at Spark Systems, says, “We transitioned to Nutanix in a big way, transforming our entire Singapore datacenter onto a Nutanix solution stack.”
With customers relying on the performance and availability of Spark Systems during trading hours, the migration window was limited. “We had 1.5 days a week available to work on our stack,” comments Peddada. To prevent disruption, IT personnel collaborated closely with Nutanix and its Nutanix Partner to complete the migration over six weekends states Peddada. “We didn’t have any migration issues because there was also a lot of support to practice and prepare for this migration process." Additionally, since the IT team's existing skills were sufficient to support the Nutanix migration, Spark Systems avoided the high costs associated with hiring additional talent in Singapore to assist with the work.
With Spark Systems running on the Nutanix solution that uses AOS Storage and AHV for virtualization, its FX trading platforms achieve minimal latency, delivering real-time trade processing. They can provide banks, hedge funds, and other customers with market-leading tick-to-trade ratios for high-frequency trading, helping Spark Systems keep an edge in its market. “Our software can deliver microsecond tick-to-trade latencies and maintain that throughout the week with zero issues,” says Peddada.
Thanks to its faster and more compact Nutanix solution, Spark Systems can expand more easily and respond quickly to growth opportunities. To support new customers, the company would have needed to add another rack of servers at its Singapore datacenter; however, it avoided incurring that cost and time. "We saved about six months with Nutanix," says Peddada, "which allowed us to service our clients and internal service teams much quicker."
He adds, “We want to double our average daily traded volumes, and, to do that, we have to ensure we have all of our basics right, which means the software services, the customer support, and most importantly, the infrastructure on our side.”
The business has freed up resources to invest in innovation as a result of reducing its storage costs and increasing server density through the use of Nutanix. Spark Systems eliminated the expense of distinct SAN storage and doubled the number of servers in a single rack. Moreover, the IT team finds that the HCI-based solution allows them to focus more on development tasks. “Nutanix sits very well with our strategy because it’s easy to use. One thing that has caught the team’s attention is the one-click migration model. There have been zero incidents after each migration to Nutanix and production so far,” Peddada says.
Spark Systems has a foundation to drive development in artificial intelligence (AI), which is increasingly supporting FX trading. The company is exploring AI-enabled transaction cost analysis, which enables traders to optimize their trade execution strategies. This capability leverages cloud technology, which Spark Systems hasn’t used previously. “I think Nutanix is probably the right partner for us for on-premises and cloud services so that we can use the same technology stack,” comments Peddada.
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