| CDS is accountable for the safe custody and movement of depository-eligible domestic and international securities, accurate record-keeping, processing post-trade transactions, and collecting and distributing entitlements arising from securities deposited by customers.
Securities may be held in book form (BEO – book-entry-only), non-certificated inventory (NCI), deferred certificated inventory (DCI) or certificate form.
CDS manages the safekeeping of securities in both physical certificate and electronic form for its participants. Most CDS-eligible securities are in physical certificate form and are held by CDS or transfer agents and registered in CDS’s nominee name. Once physical securities are deposited with CDS, CDS enters them in a ledger and they trade electronically. CDS’s electronic system virtually eliminates the risk of securities being lost, damaged or stolen.
More than 88,000 equity and debt security issues are eligible for deposit at CDS. Of these, 60 per cent are Canadian issues and 40 per cent foreign, mostly U.S. About 200 issues are interlisted on two or more exchanges.
Depository-eligible securities
- common and preferred shares
- corporate, federal, provincial and municipal bonds
- Canada savings bonds and premium bonds
- Treasury bills
- bearer deposit notes
- bankers’ acceptances
- commercial paper
- rights, warrants, units
- strip bonds, coupon receipts and packages
- mortgage and other asset-based securities
- exchange-traded options
- index-linked notes
- instalment receipts
- certificates of deposit
- American depositary receipts
- limited partnerships
CDS: the authoritative source of Canadian entitlement data
Because CDS is the nominee security holder of record for most Canadian securities, transfer agents must provide CDS with primary-source entitlement information from issuers. Being first to receive most entitlement data establishes CDS as an authoritative source of Canadian entitlement information to the securities industry. CDS’s electronic bulletin service provides information on corporate events that participants and subscribers can pass on to their clients. |