Enhanced Stock Segregated Account with Statement Service

Following the initiatives taken early this year, HKEx has recently introduced additional features to the Stock Segregated Account (SSA) with Statement Service. Investors who choose to entrust their shares to their brokers or custodians can ask their brokers or custodians to open an SSA in HKEx's CCASS for them.

An SSA is owned and operated by the broker or custodian. In using the SSA service, investors can receive statements directly from CCASS or check any share movement and the balance in their accounts through the CCASS Phone / Internet System. The following new services are made available now.

Electronic Voting

Investors who open an SSA through their brokers or custodians can now enjoy access to an electronic voting service in CCASS. Through the CCASS Phone / Internet System, they can choose to attend corporate meetings, appoint a corporate representative or request HKEx to vote on their behalf through HKSCC Nominees Ltd. Investors can also request CCASS to alert them of any upcoming shareholder votes by sending them messages via SMS or email.

Share Movement Affirmation

Investors using the SSA can opt to use the affirmation function via the CCASS Phone / Internet System to confirm transfer of shares out of the SSA. They can also elect to receive notifications via SMS or emails whenever there are share transfer transactions requiring their affirmation.

Money Settlement

Investors using the SSA can now enjoy the CCASS money settlement service. Through their brokers, investors are able to request settlement on a DvP basis when shares are moved out of the SSA. CCASS will issue electronic payment instructions to the bank account designated respectively by the broker and investor. The money will be credited into the investor's bank account on the next business day.

Removal of Limit on Number of SSAs

To assist brokers and custodians to cater for their clients' demand for SSAs, the number of SSAs that can be opened by each broker or custodian is now removed.

With these further enhancements on the SSA service, the Investor Participant Account will become less attractive.