Three Euro CSDs Sign Up to T2S

Three European central securities depositories (CSDs) have announced that they will become a part of the Target2-Securities (T2S) project.

Euroclear Belgium, France and Nederland will all join the initiative, which aims to establish a common IT platform for the settlement of nearly all bonds and equities traded in Europe. The platform will be owned and built by the European Central Bank (ECB) along with 17 signatory national central banks.

The three CSDs will finalize outsourcing agreements to T2S for settlement before signing agreements separately, but with support from parent company Euroclear SA/NV. Clients will continue to have accounts with individual CSDs and receive the post-trade services on offer.

"The three Euroclear group central securities depositories are reflecting local market sentiment by taking the decision to sign the T2S Framework Agreement," says Joël Mérère, chairman of the boards of Euroclear Belgium, Euroclear France and Euroclear Nederland. "As the first and only group of markets in continental Europe to have consolidated and harmonised transaction settlement and custody services on a shared platform, we appreciate the benefits of large-scale processing consolidation and harmonisation that T2S has the capacity to provide."

According to the project timetable, T2S is scheduled to be operational by 2015.

The three CSDs will finalize outsourcing agreements to T2S for settlement before signing agreements separately, but with support from parent company Euroclear SA/NV.