[OR] [LSEG] [E1] [C5] Identifying Critical Business Services

eBook 1: Chapter 5

Critical Business Services (CBS) of London Stock Exchange Group: Key Considerations for Operational Resilience

Introduction

For an organisation such as the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG), operational resilience is not merely a business continuity issue; it is a requirement for market stability.

LSEG is a global financial markets infrastructure and data provider operating exchanges, clearing services, market data platforms, index businesses, post-trade services, and technology solutions.

Disruption to its services can affect investors, financial institutions, regulators, and the broader financial ecosystem.

LSEG itself recognises operational resilience as a core enterprise capability and has established an enterprise-wide framework to maintain Critical Business Services (CBS) within agreed impact tolerances.

The concept of a Critical Business Service (CBS) in operational resilience differs from a traditional business function or process.

According to BCM Institute guidance, a CBS is an externally delivered service whose disruption could cause intolerable harm to customers, market participants, financial stability, or regulatory obligations.

Rather than asking “what activities do we perform?”, organisations ask “what services must continue to be delivered to external stakeholders regardless of disruption?”

This service-oriented view aligns with regulatory expectations such as the UK FCA and PRA operational resilience requirements.

For LSEG, identifying CBS is fundamental because it enables the organisation to:

• Understand services essential to financial market stability
• Prioritise resilience investments
• Map critical dependencies
• Establish impact tolerances
• Conduct scenario testing
• Protect market confidence and integrity

What is a Critical Business Service (CBS)?

A Critical Business Service is:

A service delivered to external customers or market participants where disruption could create intolerable harm to clients, financial markets, or the wider economy.

Characteristics of a CBS include:

• Delivered externally
• Supports critical market or customer outcomes
• Subject to regulatory expectations
• Requires defined impact tolerances
• Depends upon interconnected processes, people, technology, facilities, and third parties
• Must be maintained or restored during severe disruption scenarios

For a financial market infrastructure provider like LSEG, the definition extends beyond customer inconvenience and includes systemic market impacts.

As BCM Institute's training and certification course serves a global audience, the term Critical Business Services (CBS) will be used synonymously with Important Business Services (IBS) and Critical Operations within its specific regulatory jurisdiction.

Key Considerations for Identifying CBS at LSEG

LSEG's identification of important business services uses an enterprise-wide process focused on stakeholder impact and market harm. The organisation maps end-to-end dependencies and evaluates risks across its services.

The following criteria should guide CBS identification:

Proposed Critical Business Services of the London Stock Exchange Group

Based on LSEG's business model and financial market infrastructure role, the following services are likely to qualify as Critical Business Services.

Example Breakdown of CBS Dependencies

Operational resilience requires understanding how CBS depend on interconnected components.

LSEG specifically identifies and maps end-to-end dependencies across important business services to understand interconnections and improve resilience.

Example Severe but Plausible Scenarios Affecting LSEG CBS

Operational resilience programmes require severe-but-plausible scenario testing.

LSEG undertakes scenario testing at both business and enterprise levels across all Important Business Services and resource dimensions.

Regulatory Alignment

LSEG operates in a highly regulated environment and aligns its operational resilience programme with UK and international expectations, including:

• UK FCA Operational Resilience requirements
• UK PRA Supervisory Statement SS1/21
• Bank of England market infrastructure expectations
• Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA)
• Global financial market resilience guidance

LSEG has publicly stated that its operational resilience framework is built on recognised regulatory standards and impact-tolerance principles.

For the London Stock Exchange Group, Critical Business Services extend beyond ordinary operational functions because they underpin market confidence and financial system stability.

Exchange trading, clearing, market data distribution, analytics, benchmark services, and connectivity services collectively form the backbone of the global financial ecosystem.

Identifying and prioritising these CBS enables LSEG to map dependencies, establish impact tolerances, conduct scenario testing, and strengthen resilience capabilities.

Within the operational resilience planning methodology, identifying CBS represents the foundation upon which all subsequent activities—including dependency mapping, process mapping, impact tolerance setting, and scenario testing—are built.

By clearly defining these services, LSEG can ensure that severe disruptions do not compromise the continuity and integrity of critical financial markets.

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