The International Securities Service says it will bring together ISMA's longstanding expertise in producing electronic and paper-based securities data into a comprehensive, Internet-based solution.

For more than 8,000 international issues, the service will provide daily bid and offer quotes from the world's major market makers in international securities. Its coverage will also stretch beyond securities where a bid and offer price has been provided by the dealers who report prices to ISMA and provide underlying and historical data on thousands of issues, giving users an unrivalled depth covering straights, floating rate notes (FRNs), convertibles and medium term notes (MTNs), says the Association.

The initiative follows a comprehensive survey of its established customer base for printed data products. The results showed that the flexibility and ease of access made possible by the Internet signal a clear appetite amongst users for a Web-based data service.

As a key component of the new service, users will be able to define and select the data shown on screen. It will be possible, for example, to configure the data columns shown in the browser display to suit a preferred format; to filter data to generate lists of securities tailored to personal requirements; and to sort data to make it easier to pinpoint details of individual issues. The International Securities Service will also feature five-year graphical representations including prices, yields, interest rates, exchange rates and indices. In time, the service will be expanded to provide searchable access to a comprehensive archive of international securities prospectuses.

In a separate announcement, the ISMA has elected one new member and re-elected four existing members to the board of the Association. Board members who have been re-elected are Cristiano Carrus, Banco Popolare di Verona – Banco S. Geminiano E S. Prospero; Luc Caytan, Kredietbank; Jonathan Chenevix-Trench, Morgan Stanley & Co. International; and Bernard Droux, Lombard Odier & Cie. Each is entitled to serve a second three-year term. Henrik Normann, Danske Bank, joins the board for the first time.