Capital markets participants would be keen to connect directly to European central securities depositories if they could access a convenient and cost-effective cross-border settlement interface, according to a survey conducted by Syntegra among its SettleNet customer base.
The Syntegra survey found that three out of four SettleNet customer currently connect to European CSDs through an agent bank - a channel that accounts for 35 per cent of the settlement costs of a cross-border trade.
The survey showed that respondents not directly linked to a specific international CSD would be keen to connect. DTCC, Clearstream, Euroclear and SIS were among the names most frequently mentioned.
Most are dissuaded by the logisitcal issues involved in building multiple interfaces. More than half of the respondents suggested that the number of interfaces should be reduced and one in three expressed the need for a consolidated access point for settlement operations.
Kevin Covington, sector manager for Syntegra's wholesale financial services division, says: "We feel that much of the current industry consolidation is focused on the development of a single settlement engine, whereas in the short term, some real customer benefits could be achieved by reducing and standardising interfaces."