Clearstream completes settlement link to Malta 31 march 2011Valetta Reporter: Ben Wilkie
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Clearstream will include Malta, the last missing Eurozone country, in its settlement network from 11 April 2011.
The new cross-border settlement link will be operated by the Malta Stock Exchange (MSE) and will allow international investors to access Maltese securities. The link connects MSE with Clearstream Banking Frankfurt (CBF), the central securities depository (CSD) for the German domestic market.
The Maltese securities will be eligible in CASCADE, the settlement system of CBF. Customers of CBF can settle these securities between themselves and hold them in collective safe custody like any other German security. Maltese securities could also be used for collateral purposes. Moreover, they will also be eligible through the international central securities depository (ICSD) Clearstream Banking Luxembourg (CBL) via the settlement link between the ICSD and the CSD, thus allowing an even wider range of international investors to access the Maltese market.
Andreas Wolf, CEO of Clearstream Banking Frankfurt, said: “The development of the link with the Malta Stock Exchange is a further proof of our commitment to facilitate market openness and to find viable and cost-efficient solutions for the post-trade environment in response to customer and market needs.”
Eileen V Muscat, CEO of the Malta Stock Exchange, said: “We are delighted with the establishment of the link with Clearstream Banking Frankfurt which is not only a response to our industry’s needs, but which we believe is vital in helping our market to develop a truly international presence.”
The Malta Stock Exchange (MSE) was set up in November 1990 and became a full member of the European Central Securities Depository Association (ECSDA) in 2006. In 2007 it attained the license to operate a central securities depository.
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