The Madrid Stock Exchange (Bolsa de Madrid) is owned by Bolsas y Mercados Españoles (BME). Here, at the largest of Spain’s four stock exchanges, traders buy and sell stocks, convertible bonds, and fixed income securities. The Exchange bustles with international activity.
The Madrid Stock Exchange (Bolsa de Madrid) is owned by Bolsas y Mercados Españoles (BME). Here, at the largest of Spain’s four stock exchanges, traders buy and sell stocks, convertible bonds, and fixed income securities. The Exchange bustles with international activity. Its IBEX 35 index is the barometer of the Spanish stock market, reflecting the share prices of Spain’s 35 most liquid companies.
Since 1893, the Exchange has been located in El Palacio de la Bolsa de Madrid, which is both a business center and an architectural landmark in its own right. This “temple of capitalism” boasts a neoclassical style consonant with other Madrid palaces of its day. The Madrid Stock Exchange has always attracted the curiosity of the public.
Seminars, congresses, award ceremonies, dinners, press conferences, and exhibitions are held in the trading hall. Other halls, equipped with the latest audiovisual technologies, are used as well.
Context
Stock exchanges are at the heart of the action in finance today. Video surveillance is particularly critical at these sites, which is why the modernization of the surveillance system was started in 2010. The MSE security department decided to migrate from obsolete, underperforming video hardware to a modern system designed to make employees more efficient.
Competitive software trials convinced the client to choose
Axxon Intellect Enterprise, developed by AxxonSoft.
The project for expanding the security system was assigned to AFELSA. CCTV cameras were connected via Axis coders, providing complete coverage both inside and around the perimeter of the building.
After three years of system use, in 2013 it became necessary to “globalize” the BME video surveillance system, bridging the 30-kilometer gap between the Exchange building and the operations headquarters in Las Rozas.
Solution
The old equipment at headquarters was replaced with servers running Intellect. The headquarters and exchange systems were merged to create a unified surveillance system. This merger accomplished several goals:
- Simplify and standardize security workstations
- Allow intensified visual monitoring of critical areas
- Improve system manageability and scalability
- Streamline maintenance
The system currently spans around 160 cameras, four video servers, and four remote workstations with support for simultaneous side-by-side video display. Cross-monitoring is performed during selected hours. Several customizations were made for this purpose:
- Personal panel for managing audio alerts on each camera was added.
- Script for monitor use by operator. An operator can pin cameras from main monitors to his or her own workstation.
Results
The new security system at the Madrid Stock Exchange performs 24-hour video surveillance without marring the beauty or majesty of the historic building.
Next steps
AxxonSoft specialists are now contributing to work on the second phase of the project, which involves connecting the Madrid and Valencia exchanges. Collaboration with MSE is set to continue for years to come.