Citi Automates Securities Lending for Wealth Managers

In partnership with Fintech firm Sharegain, Citi has launched an automated securities lending solution for the wealth management firms to whom it provides custody services. Led by partnership between Citi Ventures and Citi’s Agency Securities Lending (ASL) business in Asia Pacific, the solution enables global wealth management firms to deliver a securities lending program to their customers without having to develop an internal program from scratch. While securities lending provides holders of securities the opportunity to earn additional revenue on their stocks, bonds and ETFs, it is traditionally only viable for large financial institutions such as asset managers due to economies of scale, high costs and complexity of implementation. Through Sharegain’s technology, customers of wealth management firms are able to decide on the securities they wish to lend, the terms, keep track of their loans at every stage of their lifecycle and recall the security at any time. According to a story in MarketsMedia news, the new securities lending solution is designed to integrate with the existing IT infrastructure of wealth managers. It provides a fully digital user experience to their customers, from opting-in to the program through to managing their lending and equips them with the necessary information and controls needed to manage their portfolio.