Taiwan Depository & Clearing Corporation

Under the guidance of the Securities and Futures Bureau of the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC), Taiwan Depository & Clearing Corporation (TDCC) has collaborated with major domestic securities firms to establish Team Taiwan for cross-border custody services. This initiative aims to promote localized cross-border custody services. With enthusiastic support from the securities firms, 15 firms that collectively holding over 95% market share have begun the securities transfer process starting in December, marking a new milestone for cross-border custody services.

TDCC Chairman Bing-Huei Lin expressed his pleasure that KGI Securities became the first firm to initiate large-scale securities transfers to TDCC’s cross-border custody service on December 23. Following this, firms including Hua Nan Securities, SinoPac Securities, Cathay Securities, Fubon Securities, President Securities, and Capital Securities will continue advancing this initiative, demonstrating their commitment to supporting regulatory policies and protecting investors' rights through concrete actions.

In response to the growing volume of sub-brokerage transactions, TDCC has implemented comprehensive upgrades to its cross-border custody system and SWIFT connectivity features. These upgrades include expanding the daily SWIFT message capacity to 100,000 messages and improving processing efficiency by 200%. The cross-border custody system has enhanced the automation of corporate action information processing, incorporating over 60 common types of corporate action messages into a fully automated reception, processing, and transmission service. Additionally, automated mechanisms for settlement instructions, corporate action information, and account review reports have been established, enabling securities firms to access real-time information more conveniently while providing a secure, stable and reliable information infrastructure.

Team Taiwan for cross-border custody services is actively advancing securities transfer progress, with strong support and assistance from four major international custodians: Euroclear, Clearstream, Citibank, and JPMorgan. Furthermore, securities firms are intensively developing and testing their systems. The timeline for securities firms to plan the transfer of custody positions to TDCC in 2025 has also been largely determined and arranged is now set for implementation.

Sub-brokerage has become a crucial channel for Taiwanese investors to invest in foreign securities. As the diversity and complexity of trading activities increase, the importance of protecting investor rights has grown. Through the establishment of cross-border custody services and the upgrade of SWIFT connectivity, TDCC can achieve faster information transmission and settlement feedback, thereby strengthening the resilience of the capital market. This initiative will further enhance Taiwan's key position in the global investment market while fully supporting the policy to promote Taiwan as an asset management center in Asia.