ITS begins piloting its own trading and depository-clearing infrastructure
The international trading platform ITS launched a trial run of its trading infrastructure, built within the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC), on June 27, 2024. The trial period will allow financial intermediaries to set up their accounting systems under real market conditions.
Once banks and brokers are ready from a technological point of view, they will provide Kazakhstani and international investors with access to trading on ITS. Participants who are registered or accredited with the AIFC are expected to provide investment services to their clients within two months.
The ITS infrastructure comprises a trading platform, a settlement depository and clearing services. This setup is designed to offer a comprehensive post-trade service cycle, provide investors with access to the global liquidity of international investment instruments and minimise trading costs.
On April 12, 2024, ITS received a licence from the Astana Financial Services Authority (AFSA) to operate as a Central Counterparty Clearing (CCP) house, becoming the first platform in Kazakhstan to use this model for settling transactions. As part of its trading infrastructure, ITS established a subsidiary, the ITS Central Securities Depository (CSD), which received a licence from the AFSA on June 6, 2024, to serve as a central depository and handle securities accounting tasks.
ITS offers 1,720 international securities, including 191 ETFs, as well as stocks and depositary receipts. Trading in securities will be conducted in their original listing currency — US dollars. The conversion of Kazakhstani tenge to US dollars will be facilitated by services from brokers accredited on the ITS trading platform.
The international securities available on ITS are part of major global indexes such as the Dow Jones, NASDAQ-100 and S&P 500, encompassing 69 sectors of the global economy.
ITS trading sessions run for nearly 18 hours a day, from 10:00 AM to 3:45 AM Astana time the following day (4:00 AM to 9:45 PM GMT the same day). This extended timeframe helps investors better manage their portfolios and quickly react to corporate and economic developments.
Securities will be settled the day after trading (T+1). The ITS trading calendar is aligned with those of the NASDAQ and the NYSE.
About ITS
ITS is an international liquidity hub. Central to ITS's business model are the principles of best execution and smart order routing technology. These principles enable investors to execute securities transactions at the best prices available on the global financial market, regardless of the transaction volume. This technology ensures that the liquidity for foreign securities on ITS matches that of leading international platforms where these securities are traded.
ITS Central Securities Depository Limited, the central depository for ITS, offers depository services for the storage and settlement of securities.
Operating a clearing house that acts as a Central Counterparty, ITS assumes the counterparty role for all obligations of clearing participants and manages the clearing process for transactions on the ITS trading platform.
ITS also calculates its own indexes: the ITS World index (ITSW) and the ITS Shariah index (ITSS).
ITS's direct clients include professional securities market participants from Kazakhstan and other countries, such as financial intermediaries who are accredited and directly registered at the AIFC. Investors, both private individuals and legal entities, access trading through these financial intermediaries, such as brokers and banks.
ITS Press Service
pr@itsx.kz