UK depository CrestCo is introducing an automated system that will enable its clients to electronically send dividend payments and tax vouchers in a single message.
Effective 12 July, issuers and agents will be able to transmit dividend and interest payments along with tax vouchers in a single message.
The decision to enable clients to attach electronic tax vouchers to payment messages was taken after the UK Inland Revenue announced that it would no longer be compulsory for issuers to distribute tax vouchers exclusively in paper form.
In a related development, CrestCo will also launch a bespoke service for clients to transmit dividend-election instructions electronically to an issuer's registrar.
Tim May, chief executive of CrestCo, says: "With the impending addition of electronic tax vouchers, we can justifiably lay claim to having removed significant paper flows from the securities-processing landscape in the United Kingdom."
In order to offset customers' development costs in moving to the electronic system, CrestCo says it will waive dividend-payment transaction fees until the end of May 2005.
From June 2005, in line with the firms tariff structure, the sender and recipient will each be charged 15 pence per instruction. Election messages will be charged at 50 pence for input and 15 pence for acceptance or rejection of the message.