Clearstream has obtained Central Securities Depository Regulation (CSDR) licenses for its three CSDs, meaning the post-trade group is now fully registered with the regulation.
The last license was granted to Clearstream Banking, its German CSD, by BaFin this month.
According to Clearstream, the authorisation represents the final step in achieving full CSDR compliance for all of its CSDs. Clearstream’s German CSD, international CSD (ICSD, Clearstream Banking S.A.) and Luxembourg CSD (LuxCSD S.A.) already hold licences pursuant to Art. 16 under CSDR.
Under the regulation, Europe’s CSDs are required to apply for a license, which sets out a host of performance and operational criteria they must fulfil such as enhanced capital and transparency requirements.
CSDR provides a set of high and consistent standards across compliant CSDs, providing assurance from the regulators to investors that stringent measures are in place to ensure the security of their assets and the efficiency of transactions. As such, the new regulatory framework aims to bring risk and cost reduction benefits to financial markets as a whole.
In December 2019, Euroclear was the first to receive a CSDR license for its ICSD business, and has since received regulatory authorisation for all of its CSDs across Europe and the UK.