National Settlement Depository, Interfax join forces to develop a reference source of corporate data and pricing center
National Settlement Depository (NSD) and Interfax News Agency announce the launch of a new joint project to collate, verify and distribute corporate information.
The parties, in keeping with an agreement signed during the Exchange Forum on April 2, also intend to coordinate efforts to develop a system, for assessing the fair value of financial instruments (pricing center).
The main goal of collaboration between NSD and Interfax in the sphere of corporate information is to create a reference database of all available information about Russian issuers and their financial instruments.
The system will incorporate official data from the NSD; data that issuers disclose via Interfax as authorized stock market agent; and live updates that Interfax itself collates about issuers and securities.
The principles by which NSD and Interfax will create the corporate data system comply with the latest world practice for the development of information products in the Reference Data segment. It will guarantee the multi-tiered verification of data, speed at which information is updated, and convenient integration of the full database and its components with the client‘s information systems.
The project‘s first information product should be launched within a month.
The second field of cooperation between NSD and Interfax will be to develop an objective assessment of the fair value of financial instruments (pricing center), one which complies with Russian law and is recognized by financial market participants.
"The corporate information project with Interfax will replace disjointed and frequently conflicting data with a single reliable standardized source of information. As regards the development of the pricing center, we see that the creation of a national benchmark in the sphere of fair value for securities is an extremely sought-after and important undertaking for the market. Both projects will work objectively for the system-wide mitigation of risks related to the use of incorrect, untimely or incomplete information about Russian issuers and their securities," said Eddie Astanin, Chairman of the NSD Executive Board.
"The project between NSD and Interfax is intended to reduce cost for market participants to obtain accurate information that is convenient to use. They will receive data in a standard format, which can be customized for their needs," said Vladimir Gerasimov, First Deputy General Director of Interfax.
About the National Settlement Depository
National Settlement Depository holds the status of Central Depository* of the Russian Federation and is a member of the Moscow Exchange Group. The NSD was established on June 27, 1996. Securities worth a total of 28.3 trillion rubles were deposited with the NSD as of February 28, 2015. The Central Bank of Russia has recognized the NSD as a systemically important repository. The NSD‘s payments system is, by status, of systemic and national importance.
The NSD provides a wide range of services, including settlement and depository services, registration of OTC transactions (repository) and information and custodial services. NSD is the Russian national numbering agency and the substitute numbering agency for the CIS, authorized to allocate the international ISIN and CFI codes. The NDS is a Local Operating Unit, assigning international Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) codes. The Bank of Russia has assigned the NSD the status of payment system operator with the registered title Non-bank Credit Organization ZAO NSD Payment System.
The NSD carries out settlements on the stock exchange and most OTC settlements, holds Russian securities in its capacity as central depository and foreign securities. As of today, the NSD has accounts with the central depositories and international central depositories of eight countries, and correspondent accounts with some of the biggest Russian and foreign banks. The NSD holds securities for issuers from more than 40 countries and an "AA-" rating from Thomas Murray Data Services, the specialist custody rating, risk management and research firm.
More information about the NSD can be found at www.nsd.ru.
* The status of Central Depository was awarded by order of the Russian Federal Service for Financial Markets No. 12-2761/PZ-I dated 06.11.2012. The NSD holds Professional Securities Market Participant License No. 177–12042–000100 of February 19, 2009 to conduct depository activities, issued by the Bank of Russia. It holds License No. 3294 of July 26, 2013 to conduct banking transactions issued by the Bank of Russia; and License No. 077–00004–000010 of December 20, 2012 to conduct clearing activities, issued by the Bank of Russia.
About Interfax
Interfax is the recognized leader on the Russian information market in the B2B segment. Interfax was founded in 1989, when a group of journalists formed an information agency that became the first nongovernmental outlet for the latest political and economic news about the Soviet Union. Interfax is the most frequently cited source for information on Russia and the CIS in the foreign press and the most popular newswire service about the Russian stock market.
Interfax develops professional information solutions that help companies operate in the financial and commodity markets and reach investment decisions, manage risk, organize external communications and fulfill regulatory requirements. Interfax‘s best-known services include SPARK (risk management, marketing, assessment of businesses), EFiR (full information for financial market participants), E-DISСLOSURE.RU (stock market disclosure system), SCAN (media analysis and monitoring) and others).
Interfax, Sberbank and Experian have created the United Credit Bureau, the Russian market leader for credit information; Moody‘s Interfax Rating Agency, a partnership between Interfax and Moody‘s, assigns national-scale ratings to Russian issuers; and a joint venture with Dun & Bradstreet, another international information market leader, provides information about foreign companies.