Obtain Fixed Income Membership

All trades in fixed income cash instruments on Nasdaq's Nordic markets are cleared and settled bilaterally between members. To trade bilaterally cleared instruments, a member is required to either be a member of the relevant Central Securities Depository (CSD) or settle through a custodian bank.

Trading can start when:

• all applications have been signed, returned and approved by Nasdaq Nordic
• technical access has been established and tested
• at least two traders have been authorized and registered.

The membership process starts by contacting the fixed income team at one of the exchanges your firm is applying to. At first contact, you will be introduced to a key account manager who will guide you throughout the application process. Once a contact is established, the process starts with filling out the membership application form together with the relevant appendices. The new member is informed of the products, membership requirements, trading rules, costs and other relevant matters by the key account manager.

The membership material sent to Nasdaq is valid for two months. Should the process be postponed, Nasdaq may require updated material from the applicant.

Download the application form in the Resource Center below.

Appendices to enclose:

• Copy of the relevant authorizations to provide investment services in the relevant jurisdictions (FSA approval).
• Financial statements for the previous year and if available, the most recent interim report.
• Copy of the company's Articles of Association
• Copy of the company's Certificate of Incorporation
• List of authorized signatories specifying the authorities of each signatory
• Description of the ownership structure (If the applicant is part of a group of companies and if it is not in the financial statement). The names of other group of companies and the applicant's relationship to those companies should be clearly indicated.
• Member Portal Administrator Appointment Form

Additional forms to enclose:

• All applicants are required to complete the Sanctions Screening Information Request Form as a mandatory attachment to the Membership application
• Verification of custody bank for bilateral clearance of trades.

The forms must be signed by any Nasdaq Nordic exchange member who wants to trade securities that are bilaterally cleared and settled at a CSD where the member does not hold full membership of the CSD. The Custody Bank must also sign the forms to acknowledge that they assume the responsibility for the trades.

The member agreement will be sent to the applicant by the key account manager at Nasdaq Nordic and is the last formal step of the membership application process.

The Nasdaq Member Portal is a tool used for administrating trader authorizations and regulatory information such as order record keeping. Before being approved as a member, a firm must set up an account in the Member Portal and complete tasks to verify compliance with the Nordic Member Rules.