ISIN Organization, Inc. the independent service bureau specializing in the ISIN code application process on behalf of issuers of public and private securities as well as data vending solutions to the ISIN industry, today announced the launch of its global, web-based listing service for existing ISIN code holders and new issuers. ISIN is the acronym for “International Securities Identification Number”, a alpha-numeric identifier which is the global financial industry standard for identifying a specific equity, debt or derivative financial instrument issued by public corporations, private companies and partnership entities.
Illustrating the size of the marketplace, according to financial industry experts, more than 200,000 ISIN codes are issued each month across the globe; upwards of 20 million ISIN codes have been issued since 1994.
The ISIN.org service, available effective December 1, will enable issuers of equity and debt, including public corporations, hedge funds, mutual funds, unit trusts and operators of private partnerships to provide existing and prospective investors with a reporting tool that provides greater transparency as to the details of financial instruments outstanding, including the most current net asset value of the respective investor holdings. The ISIN.org service will facilitate the display of Issuer information within an easily-accessed, web-based portal, irrespective of where the fund is domiciled. Fees for this service will start at US $1000.
According to Steven Chow, a principal from China International Limited, a Shanghai, China-based fund manager, “Any reasonably-priced service that allows fund managers, administrators and other entities to publicize and update their ISIN code and related company data in real time via a credible, 3rd party website is a critical tool given today’s global investor demand for transparency.”
Added Chow, “While there are a select number of financial market vendors that operate “terminal farms” that facilitate Issuers to post their data, those legacy services are often expensive to Issuers, and more important, access to that information by end consumers is typically cost-prohibitive. ISIN.org seems to have addressed both of these challenges.”