.jpg)
Clearstream has become the first International Central Security Depositary (ICSD) to accept the Bahraini Dinar (BHD) as eligible for settlement as of Monday 28th May. Additionally six new currencies, the Qatari Rial, the Guatemalan Quetzal, the Dominican Peso, the Vietnamese Dong, the Sri Lanka Rupee and the Mongolian Tugrik have been accepted by Clearstream as denomination currencies.
This innovative move comes in response to growing demand by investment banks and issuers to issue and settle eurobonds denominated in BHD.
Robert Tabet, Head of Clearstream for the Middle East and Africa, said “We are delighted to have been able to make the BHD eligible for securities settlements in Clearstream. Coming after the acceptance of the United Arab Emirates Dirham last year, the eligibility of the Bahraini Dinar shows the growing importance of financial activity in the region as well as Clearstream’s commitment to help its customers accompany this growth”. Clearstream has had an office in the Middle East (in Dubai) for over 10 years to service financial institutions in the Middle East and Africa.
The Bahraini Dinar is not a Bridge eligible currency. The Bridge is an electronic communications link which facilitates the efficient settlement of securities transactions between counterparties in Clearstream Banking Luxembourg and Euroclear Bank.
The six new currencies admitted by Clearstream will be denomination currencies, ie only for the denomination of a bond issue. They will not be settlement currency meaning that Clearstream’s customers can issue securities in these currencies but they cannot settle against them. There are 41 currencies eligible for settlement in Clearstream and 51 denomination currencies.
