Information
technology has sparked a revolution in today’s world. It is
presently taking the world in it’s stride consists
of revolutionary trends in
the computer, computer related software, Internet and the development of the
telecommunication equipment. The financial markets both on the domestic front
as well as on the international arena are being integrated into one with the
increasing use of
technology in the financial sector.
Earlier the scrips were physically transferred but now the investors can
trade various instruments on different stock exchanges regardless of the
geographical and time boundaries. The
electronic communications network (ECN),
has electronic brokers taking limit orders. It has marked the beginning of the
Internet in the investment banking industry. In India,
banks as well as other financial entities entered the world of information
technology and with Indian Financial Net (INFINET). The Information Technology Act,
2000 has given legal recognition to creation, trans-mission and retention of an
electronic data to be treated as valid proof in a court of law.
The internet has changed the very face of the banking industry. Earlier the
net used to serve as a promotional channel for the banks. But with increasing
usage of internet by the public, almost every bank has floated internet
banking. Checking balance, ordering a checkbook, opening an account, transfer of funds, trading in stock markets-
all have been digitalized.
With technological revolution, markets have become cheaper, transparent,
faster and automated. Connectivity has increased. The global nature of
technology driven markets can be witnessed from the fact that the giant
transactions in complex financial instruments are executed at the speed of
light, which in earlier years was conceivable.