On the London Stock Exchange, a system “incident” stopped trade in hundreds of shares. The London Stock Exchange issued a statement on October 19, regarding an incident that led to trading being halted in some segments.

A disruption in activity led the London Stock Exchange (LSE) (LSEG.L) to halt trading in smaller equities on Thursday, while blue chip shares were unaffected.

The FTSE 100 (.FTSE), FTSE 250 (.FTMC), and International Order Book securities—those shares listed in London by foreign corporations—were all functioning regularly, according to the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG).

Investors may expect volatility at the open tomorrow. The FTSE 100 finished the day down 1.2%.

On Thursday, October 19 at 15:26:44, the note from London Stock Exchange read – The London Stock Exchange is currently investigating an incident. Currently, only FTSE 100, FTSE 250 and IOB securities are available for trading. We are undertaking immediate analysis and will provide further updates through our live service portal”.

Later on On Thursday, October 19 at 15:47:46, communication read – The London Stock Exchange is currently investigating an incident.

FTSE 100, FTSE 250 and IOB securities still operating normally. Orders in all other instruments currently halted will now be expired.”

According to data gathered by Bloomberg, the outage largely affected smaller-cap shares but also numerous well-known companies like Asos Plc, Deliveroo Plc, and Metro Bank Holdings Plc. At around 3:10 p.m. local time, the halt started.

This problem has occurred before on the biggest stock trading exchange in the UK. The LSE experienced an outage in 2019 that lasted for around an hour and forty minutes. In June 2018, a software fault triggered a one-hour trading delay, which also affected it.

The London Stock Exchange operates a broad range of international equity, fixed income, exchange-traded funds/exchange-traded products and foreign exchange markets. London Stock Exchange is home to several capital formation and execution venues – London Stock Exchange, AIM, and Turquoise.

Now, in the latest note it reads –

Thursday, 19/10/2023 16:10:27

FTSE 100, FTSE 250 and IOB securities are operating as normal.

London Stock Exchange confirms there will be no further continuous trading in affected securities.

Further information on Closing Auction status for the impacted stocks will be cascaded shortly.

Thursday, 19/10/2023 16:55:04

FTSE 100, FTSE 250 and IOB securities closed as normal. Orders in all other instruments have been expired back to users. There will not be a closing auction in affected instruments. A further update on closing prices will be provided shortly.

Thursday, 19/10/2023 17:05:58

FTSE 100, FTSE 250 and IOB securities closed as normal. London Stock Exchange has invoked a Halt & Close for affected instruments. A closing price for the affected securities has been set and disseminated.