Data Serialization

Data serialization is the process of converting complex data structures into a format that can be stored or transmitted across a network. In high-performance trading systems, the choice of serialization format is critical for minimizing latency.

Formats like SBE or Protobuf are often preferred over generic formats like JSON because they are faster to encode and decode. This allows trading engines to ingest market data and send order messages with minimal CPU overhead.

Efficient serialization is a technical requirement for systems that need to handle high volumes of data in real time. It is a key optimization step in the software stack.