Citis Securities and Fund Services has launched securities lending services in India, making it the first custodian to launch these services on the countrys National Stock Exchange (NSE).
The country’s national regulator in August extended the tenure of securities lending and borrowing transactions to 12 months from the existing 27-weekly/monthly series, with a range from one week up to 12 months. In the same month, Indias insurance regulator published guidelines for life and non-life insurance companies to participate in securities lending and borrowing (SLB) and reverse repo and repo transactions in government and corporate debt securities. The draft guidelines say insurers can lend only up to 10% of their total equity holdings in SLB transactions.
Citi’s new service, to be delivered via OpenLendSM, will allow both domestic Indian and offshore clients, for the first time, seamless market access to the anonymous exchange-traded central counterparty model prevalent in India.
Citis OpenLendSM is an open architecture securities lending solution that leverages Citi’s global presence, robust risk management controls and innovative trading strategies to help clients achieve their performance objectives.
“We have been in involved with the development of the Indian securities market since we first opened our doors in 1902. This landscape has seen remarkable transformation, and in response to new market conditions, we have built on our experience and expertise to deliver a comprehensive exchange securities lending solution to our clients for the Indian market,” said Debopama Sen, head of Securities and Fund Services for Citi Transaction Services in India.
The platform is now available in 72 markets globally.
(JDC)