First-of-its-kind initiative in Indian capital markets; infrastructure designed to support over 224 GPUs
KD NEWS SERVICE
MUMBAI, Nov 9: The National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) has taken a significant leap in technological innovation by deploying Direct-to-Chip Liquid Cooling (DCLC) technology to support its expanding artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, positioning itself at the forefront of advanced computing capabilities in India’s capital markets.
The deployment, described as a first-of-its-kind initiative in Indian capital markets, marks an important milestone in NSE’s ongoing efforts to build scalable, resilient, energy-efficient and future-ready technological infrastructure capable of meeting the rapidly evolving computational demands of artificial intelligence.
With AI applications increasingly becoming integral to financial markets, data processing, analytics and operational efficiency, the Exchange has undertaken the initiative to establish a high-performance computing ecosystem that can accommodate the growing requirements of GPU-intensive workloads. The newly deployed liquid cooling infrastructure is specifically designed to support high-density Graphics Processing Unit (GPU)-based computing, offering an advanced alternative to conventional cooling arrangements.
According to NSE, the infrastructure has been purpose-built to accommodate the increasing computational intensity associated with AI applications. The Exchange plans to scale its GPU capacity beyond 80 during the current quarter, while the overall infrastructure has been designed with the capability to expand up to 224 GPUs across high-density racks.
The development assumes particular significance at a time when financial institutions and market infrastructure organisations across the world are increasingly investing in advanced computing systems to process enormous volumes of data, strengthen analytical capabilities and facilitate technology-driven financial services.
A technological breakthrough for India’s capital markets
Direct-to-Chip Liquid Cooling represents an advanced approach to managing the heat generated by high-performance computing processors. Unlike conventional air-cooling systems, which primarily depend on circulating cooled air around computing equipment, DCLC technology uses liquid cooling to remove heat directly from components that generate substantial thermal energy.
High-performance GPUs, particularly those deployed for artificial intelligence training, inference and other computationally intensive applications, generate considerable heat during operation. As computing density increases, managing this heat becomes an important technological and operational challenge.
The adoption of DCLC technology enables NSE to address this challenge through an efficient and scalable cooling architecture. By supporting high-density GPU deployments, the system is expected to provide a stronger technological foundation for the Exchange’s expanding AI requirements.
The initiative also reflects a broader transformation taking place in financial market infrastructure, where technological competitiveness increasingly depends not merely on computing capacity but also on the ability to manage power consumption, cooling requirements, operational reliability and data security.
For NSE, the deployment is therefore not simply an infrastructure upgrade but a strategic investment in strengthening the technological backbone of India’s financial markets.
Strengthening data sovereignty and operational control
An important feature of the newly deployed infrastructure is that it has been established within NSE’s on-premises data centre environment.
This arrangement enables the Exchange to retain complete operational control over its AI data, computing resources and access mechanisms, while strengthening data sovereignty and supporting its security governance framework.
The approach is particularly relevant for a major market infrastructure institution entrusted with operating critical financial market systems. As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly integrated into organisational processes, the management, storage, processing and protection of data assume greater importance.
By maintaining the infrastructure within its own data centre environment, NSE seeks to ensure that its expanding AI capabilities remain aligned with its internal security policies and applicable regulatory and compliance requirements.
The deployment is also intended to provide the Exchange with greater flexibility in managing computing resources, scaling infrastructure and responding to emerging technological requirements without compromising its operational oversight.
GPU capacity to expand to 224
The infrastructure has been designed with scalability as a central consideration. NSE plans to take its GPU deployment beyond 80 during the current quarter, while retaining the capacity to scale the system up to 224 GPUs across high-density racks.
This expandable architecture is expected to provide the Exchange with the flexibility to accommodate future growth in AI-related computing requirements.
The ability to scale GPU capacity is particularly important because AI workloads can vary considerably in terms of processing intensity, memory requirements and computational resources. An infrastructure capable of accommodating such expansion can help organisations prepare for new applications without repeatedly undertaking major structural upgrades.
For NSE, this capacity expansion represents an effort to anticipate future technological requirements rather than responding only after computing demands have increased.
The Exchange believes that the new infrastructure will strengthen its readiness for the next generation of AI workloads and support the development of a more sophisticated technological environment for its operations.
NSE’s commitment to technological leadership
Commenting on the development, Viral Mody, Executive Director, NSE, said the Exchange’s technology leadership was rooted in its commitment to bringing world-class technology to Indian market participants and building resilient, scalable and future-ready market infrastructure.
He said NSE continuously invested in advanced technologies to strengthen operational excellence, enhance efficiency and promote the responsible use of resources.
According to Mody, the deployment of Direct-to-Chip Liquid Cooling reflected this approach by enabling the Exchange to prepare for evolving computing needs while advancing towards a more energy-conscious technology ecosystem.
He further emphasised that initiatives of this nature were aimed at contributing to a stronger, more efficient and globally competitive Indian capital markets ecosystem, in keeping with the vision of Viksit Bharat.
Sampath Manickam, Chief Technology Officer, NSE, said artificial intelligence was driving a fundamental shift in technology infrastructure, accompanied by significantly higher demands on computing density, power and cooling.
He explained that NSE’s approach was to anticipate these requirements and build infrastructure ahead of demand.
Manickam said the DCLC deployment provided a scalable and energy-efficient foundation for high-density GPU computing while strengthening the Exchange’s preparedness for the next generation of AI workloads.
He added that as NSE expanded its capabilities, its focus would remain on building resilient, scalable and future-ready infrastructure to support the organisation’s evolving technological requirements and the continued growth of India’s capital markets.
Preparing for the next phase of AI-driven financial infrastructure
The deployment also forms part of NSE’s broader commitment to continuously upgrading its technological capabilities in response to the changing requirements of the financial services industry.
Modern capital markets increasingly depend on sophisticated technological systems for data-intensive operations, surveillance, risk management, market analytics, information processing and a wide range of institutional functions. The growing adoption of artificial intelligence is expected to further increase the demand for high-performance computing infrastructure.
Against this backdrop, investments in advanced cooling systems, high-density GPU computing and scalable data centre architecture are becoming increasingly important for institutions seeking to maintain technological resilience and operational efficiency.
NSE has indicated that, based on the requirements of market participants, it intends to extend the DCLC technology to its co-location data centre in the near future.
The proposed extension could further strengthen the availability of advanced computing infrastructure within the Exchange’s broader technology ecosystem, subject to the requirements of participating market institutions.
The initiative underscores NSE’s recognition that the future competitiveness of financial markets will depend not only on trading platforms and market connectivity but also on the strength, efficiency and resilience of the underlying technology infrastructure.
By investing in advanced liquid cooling technology and preparing its computing ecosystem for substantially higher GPU capacity, NSE is seeking to remain equipped for the emerging demands of artificial intelligence and the next phase of India’s digital financial transformation.
