Ukrainian Depositary of Securities to merge with Interregional Stock Union

Interfax said yesterday that Ukrainian Depositary of Securities (UDS) shareholders voted at their AGM on June 10 to merge with Interregional Stock Union (ISU), also a commercial depositary company. UDS’ 25% stake is owned by the National Bank of Ukraine; other shareholders include the PFTS, Ukrainian Interbank Currency Exchange and 19 Ukrainian banks. ISU was established in 1998 and is the biggest Ukrainian depositary. Volodymyr Verbyany: The Ukrainian Depositary of Securities (UDS) was established to finish the battle between the Interregional Stock Union (ISU) and the state-owned National Depositary of Ukraine (NDU) for the status of central depositary. The latter is the central depositary by law, but its functions are limited, and market players have avoided it until the state decreases its stake to 25%. The Ukrainian Depositary of Securities looks the most reasonable candidate for the true central depositary, as it is controlled both by the state and market players.