The Central Depository and Settlement Corporation (CDSC) is set to install a new depository software system which will enable the market offer intra-day settlement of shares, also known as day trading.
CDSC has procured the new system from South African payment and depository software provider Perago for Sh12 million.
It will enable the CDSC handle new market products like securities lending and borrowing, day trading, and support the commodities and futures market, according to CDSC chief executive officer Rose Mambo.
“When we launch our new system, which is slated for April next year, we will be able to offer all these new products to the market. The new system has cost us about $120,000 (Sh12 million),” said Ms Mambo on Thursday.
“We expect to receive delivery of a version that we will be able to go live with this month, and then we will proceed with testing and integration with stockbrokers, the NSE, and depository agents before going live in April,” she added.
The new system will also enable CDSC to handle several markets and products concurrently, and can be scaled up as needs go up. CDSC currently handles up to 15,000 to 30,000 transactions per day.
In order for the market to offer day trading, the Central Bank of Kenya - which handles the cash settlement for shares and corporate bonds traded at the NSE - will also have to retool their system to allow several settlement cycles within a day, with the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) also needing to amend their trading rules.
