A shareholder of Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) is moving to sue former executives and directors over the failed blockchain-based project to replace CHESS. Cointelegraph reported on Tuesday that Rocheville notified ASX it would apply to the Federal Court for permission to bring a statutory derivative action under sections 236 and 237 of the Australian Corporations Act.

If the court grants permission, Rocheville would file a lawsuit on behalf of ASX against some former executives and directors. ASX said there were no allegations against the exchange itself in connection with the lawsuit. It did not disclose the identities of the former officials targeted, details of the alleged breaches of duty or the remedies Rocheville would seek.

ASX has worked since 2016 to replace its existing clearing and settlement system, CHESS, developing a distributed-ledger-based system with New York-based Digital Asset. In December 2017, it raised expectations that it would become the first securities exchange to introduce blockchain into core services, but the launch was repeatedly delayed.

The project was halted in November 2022. An Accenture review found significant issues with the design and the system's ability to meet the exchange's requirements. In May 2023, ASX said it had formally abandoned the blockchain approach and would consider adopting more traditional technology.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission later sued ASX in August 2024. The regulator said ASX told the market in February 2022 that the project was progressing smoothly and was on track for an April 2023 launch, but it believed there was no reasonable basis to support that.

ASX admitted in June 2026 to misleading conduct related to the project, and the Federal Court ordered it on July 3 to pay a $14.4 million fine and $2.1 million in costs.