Initial Settlement
If you plan to hold your interests in the notes through DTC, you will follow the settlement practices applicable to global security issues. If you plan to hold your interests in the notes through Euroclear or Clearstream, Luxembourg, you will follow the settlement procedures applicable to conventional Eurobonds in registered form.
Secondary Market Trading
The purchaser of notes determines the place of delivery in secondary market trading. Therefore, it is important for you to establish at the time of the trade where both the purchaser’s and seller’s accounts are located to ensure that settlement can be made on the desired value date (i.e., the date specified by the purchaser and seller on which the price of the securities is fixed).
Trading between DTC purchasers and sellers. DTC participants will transfer interests in the notes among themselves in the ordinary way according to the rules and operating procedures of DTC governing global security issues.
Trading between Euroclear and/or Clearstream, Luxembourg participants. Euroclear and Clearstream, Luxembourg participants will transfer interests in the notes among themselves in the ordinary way according to the rules and operating procedures of Euroclear and Clearstream, Luxembourg governing conventional Eurobonds.
Trading between a DTC seller and a Euroclear or Clearstream, Luxembourg purchaser. When the notes are to be transferred from the account of a DTC participant to the account of a Euroclear or Clearstream, Luxembourg participant, the purchaser must first send instructions to Euroclear or Clearstream, Luxembourg through a participant at least one business day before the settlement date. Euroclear or Clearstream, Luxembourg will then instruct its depositary to receive the notes and make payment for them. On the settlement date, the depositary will make payment to the DTC participant’s account and the notes will be credited to the depositary’s account. After settlement has been completed, DTC will credit the notes to the depositary of Euroclear or Clearstream, Luxembourg, as the case may be; Euroclear or Clearstream, Luxembourg will credit the notes, in accordance with its usual procedures, to the participant’s account; and the participant will then credit the purchaser’s account. These notes credits will appear the next day (European time) after the settlement date. The cash debit from the account of Euroclear or Clearstream, Luxembourg will be back-valued to the settlement date, which will be the preceding day if settlement occurs in New York. If settlement is not completed on the intended value date (i.e., the trade fails), the cash debit will instead be valued at the actual settlement date.
Participants in Euroclear and Clearstream, Luxembourg will need to make funds available to Euroclear or Clearstream, Luxembourg in order to pay for the notes on the value date. The most direct way of doing this is to preposition funds (i.e., have funds in place at Euroclear or Clearstream, Luxembourg before the value date), either from cash on hand or from existing lines of credit. Under this approach, however, participants may take on credit exposure to Euroclear and Clearstream, Luxembourg until the notes are credited to their accounts one day later.
As an alternative, if Euroclear or Clearstream, Luxembourg has extended a line of credit to a participant, the participant may decide not to preposition funds, but to allow Euroclear or Clearstream, Luxembourg to draw on the line of credit to finance settlement for the notes. Under this procedure, Euroclear or Clearstream, Luxembourg would charge the participant overdraft charges for one day, assuming that the overdraft would be cleared when the notes were credited to the participant’s account. However, interest on the notes would accrue from the value date. Therefore, in many cases the interest income on notes which the participant earns during that one-day period will substantially reduce or offset the amount of the participant’s overdraft charges. Of course, this result will depend on the cost of funds (i.e., the interest rate that Euroclear or Clearstream, Luxembourg charges) to each participant.
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