Euroclear Bank will join the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) as the first financial institution to become a custodial member, they said on Monday.
The Brussels-based financial services company specializes in the settlement of securities transactions as well as the safekeeping and asset servicing of these securities.
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The membership, taking effect next month, will allow Euroclear to access TASE directly without engaging in trading activity while providing settlement and asset services for domestic Israeli securities.
Euroclear has similar arrangements with exchanges in Argentina and Mexico.
Frank Slagmolen, deputy head of global capital markets at Euroclear, said the bank has significant numbers of institutional clients that trade in Israel but currently needed to go through third parties.
Settling in Israeli instruments will be safer and easier for clients and will further strengthen its global network, he said.
TASE, which has been struggling with delistings and declining trading volumes, became a public company this month after completing an initial public offering.
"Hopefully... we will be getting more players who are custodial members so they have direct access to the Israeli market," said Orly Grinfeld, a TASE vice president.
