Nominee company: Difference between revisions

{{fullanat2|cass|nominee company||6.2.4|}}

A [[nominee company]] is not a custodian per se. It is a dedicated entity which does nothing other than acting as a registered owned of shares. Under CASS a custodian cannot hold its own house positions in the same legal entity as their client’s assets.

A wholly-owned subsidiary of a [[custodian]] used as a nominee company to hold legal title to client investments (other than cash). This common structure in the UK custody Market was in fact  endorsed by Peter Bloxham's ''[https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/271040/PU1560_SAR.pdf Final review of the Investment Bank Special Administration Regulations 2011]'' in January 2014, the third recommendation of which was:

“:... the rapid transfer of client positions to a solvent successor firm was facilitated by the fact that the failed firm held substantially all its (UK) {{cassprov|custody asset}}s in the name of a separate {{cassprov|nominee company}} {{tag|subsidiary}}. It was possible to transfer the shares in that {{cassprov|nominee company}} as part of the transfer of client positions. The transfer of the shares in the {{cassprov|nominee company}} was sufficient to produce the result that all the client holdings registered in that nominee passed into the control of the transferee, without the need for transfers of individual holdings. I recommend that consideration be given by the FCA to encouraging this practice.”

Yes, the {{tag|CASS}} rules really say “with respect of”. And they don't say the same level responsibility ''as what''. So nice bit of drafting there, ladies and gentlemen of the {{t|European Union}}.