Nasdaq central securities depository in Iceland has merged with Nasdaq CSD, which will now operate in Iceland, Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia, RÚV reports. An announcement about the merger states that in its wake, Icelandic operations will be able to make full use of the opportunities and connections that Nasdaq CSD’s securities depository system has to offer, thus creating new opportunities for both domestic and foreign customers.
“This is both the biggest infrastructure change as well as technological advancement that has taken place in the Icelandic securities market for 20 years and will allow us to participate in innovation and development in this branch that will deliver to our clients,” stated Magnús Kristinn Ásgeirsson, CEO of Nasdaq CSD in Iceland. It is expected that the technical part of the merger – the introduction of a new central securities depository system – will be completed on 15 June.
In 2017, Nasdaq CSD became the first European securities depository to obtain operating licenses under the new European Central Securities Depository Regulation (CSDR), and was recently granted a licence to operate in Iceland according to that regulation. Nasdaq CSD has integrated the operations of Nasdaq Securities Centre in Iceland with Nasdaq CSD in accordance with CSDR’s requirements for governance and operations, with a view to ensuring more secure and efficient settlement services in the Icelandic securities market in accordance with international standards.