Clearstream’s Core Business Continue Growth In October 2005

Clearstream’s core business areas saw further growth during October with the number of monthly international transactions processed rising 29.1 percent at 1.81 million (October 2004: 1.40 million). Of these transactions, 79 percent are Over the Counter (OTC) transactions and 21 percent are registered as stock exchange transactions. Domestic settlement transactions in Germany increased 15.1 percent reaching 2.80 million compared to 2.44 million for the same period last year. The ratio for domestic settlement transactions was 70 percent stock exchange transactions compared to 30 percent OTC transactions.

The value of assets held under custody on behalf of customers rose to EUR 8.5 trillion, a 13 percent rise from October 2004 when it stood at EUR 7.5 trillion. Securities held under custody in Clearstream’s international business experienced a rise of 18.0 percent from 3.25 trillion to 3.8 trillion. On the domestic German business, securities held under custody rose by 9.9 percent from 4.25 trillion to 4.7 trillion.

Growth was also strong within the Global Securities Financing services business with monthly average outstandings reaching a historical high at EUR 207.1 billion. The combined services, which includes tripartite repo, securities lending and collateral management, collectively experienced a rise of 50.3 percent from the same month last year (October 2004: EUR 137.8 billion).

Vestima+, the investment funds service, also reached record level with 236,402 transactions processed, a 78.6 percent rise in the year over October 2004 (132,332).