NZX’s 1H26 results modestly strengthen the forward setup, with Smart and Wealth Technologies providing increasingly visible growth while Capital Markets remains dependent on a normalization in issuance and trading activity. The 140 bps y/y margin decline to 35.6% appears largely tied to QuayStreet transition costs and investment rather than underlying deterioration, with management expecting improvement in 2H26 despite elevated Smart marketing ahead of the Q4 KiwiSaver relaunch. Wealth Technologies remains the clearest medium-term growth driver, with FUA reaching $21.1B and contracted migrations supporting ARR toward $18.7M, while Smart FUM increased 28.5% y/y to $18.0B. Management maintained FY26 EBITDA guidance of $53.0M-$58.5M and is tracking toward the midpoint, supporting confidence in the near-term earnings cadence as recurring growth in Smart and Wealth offsets a still-muted Capital Markets backdrop.