.jpg)
Global Transaction Services, a business of Citigroup Corporate and Investment Banking, and Clearstream announced today that CitiConnect for Securities, Citigroup’s online order to settlement transaction management system, will give institutional clients with access to Vestima+, Clearstream’s automated order routing service for the investment funds industry, to provide single and streamlined access to trade European investment funds.
CitiConnect for Securities is an open architecture, standardized global platform providing full trade life cycle services for collective investment schemes, equities, fixed income and investment funds. The new relationship with Vestima+ will increase efficiency and provide institutional clients with centralised, automated access to a significant range of transfer agents in Europe.
Vestima+ is the automated funds order routing service pioneered by Clearstream and the only available system offering free choice of settlement and custody routes. Participants worldwide can access Europe’s main domestic markets via Vestima+ as a single entry point allowing straight through processing from trade initiation to final settlement. It is aimed at reducing the costs and inefficiencies in the area of order processing within the investment funds industry by using electronic communication media like an internet-based workstation or SWIFT messages.
Commenting on today’s announcement, Neeraj Sahai, Global Head of Securities and Fund Services, Citigroup Corporate and Investment Banking, said, “CitiConnect for Securities delivers a unique offering by combining execution in equities, fixed income and collective investment schemes with our custody services through an order driven trade to settlement service. By embedding Vestima+ in our open architecture platform we are maximising automation and delivery efficiencies to our clients.”
Philippe Seyll, Head of Investment fund services at Clearstream added, “We are very pleased that CitiConnect has selected Vestima+ for accessing investment funds in Europe and particularly in Luxembourg, Europe’s largest market place for funds. We strongly believe that the fund market needs open access and free choice of settlement routes and deserves the same level of automation, security in settlement and traceability that other securities markets enjoy.”
