Clearstream, Deutsche Börse Group’s international central securities depository, plans to expand its existing link to the Ukrainian capital market by adding new asset classes. The move is intended to enable cross-border investments and thus improve the liquidity of the domestic capital market.

“By expanding its presence in the market and intensifying ties with Ukrainian market players and authorities, Clearstream’s goal is to support the Ukrainian capital market and the reconstruction of the country’s infrastructure and economy,” the company said in a statement. To this end, it will open an account with the National Bank of Ukraine to connect to the National Depository of Ukraine with the support of the Ukrainian Ministry of Finance.

Clearstream has been active in the Ukrainian capital market for Ukrainian debt securities since 2019 and is the only global custodian offering access to the local market for government bonds denominated in Ukrainian currency. It will now expand its services to reconstruction-related instruments.

“As a provider of trusted, transparent and efficient infrastructure, we operate our link to Ukraine with the aim of enabling further international investment opportunities,” stated Jan Willems, head of global markets at Clearstream. “This decision emphasises our commitment to the Ukrainian market and our excellent local partners and, most importantly, our aim to actively support the reconstruction of the country.”

Facilitating the financing of Ukraine's reconstruction

“Almost 4 years of successful NBU-Clearstream link operation have proven the investors’ interest in the Ukrainian market,” Andriy Pyshnyy, governor of the National Bank of Ukraine, stated in the company’s announcement. “In view of anticipated Ukraine’s recovery plans, NBU is happy to provide a reliable and ready-made solution aimed at further expansion of the link and opening access to post-war financial instruments to Clearstream’s customers. Development of cooperation with Clearstream will contribute to widening the range of investors and might become one of the driving forces in facilitating Ukraine’s infrastructure rebuilding.”

Yuriy Butsa, government commissioner for public debt management in Ukraine, commented: “We welcome the expansion of the Clearstream link to the new assets in Ukraine and thank our partners at Clearstream for making it happen at such a challenging time for our country. The initial opening of the link to Ukrainian market back in 2019 proved to be a game changer for our local government bond market and significantly contributed to its development. We believe that the simplified access to diverse Ukrainian investment products for international asset managers will not only help bringing foreign private capital to participate in the reconstruction of Ukraine, but also boost the development of Ukrainian capital market.”

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