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Central Securities Depositories (CSDs) serve as the backbone of capital market infrastructure, ensuring the safekeeping of securities, the efficient processing of trades, and the maintenance of investor confidence.
Across the Arab region, CSDs play a critical role in linking local capital markets with global investors, but they also face a rapidly evolving operational landscape characterized by technological disruption, rising cybersecurity risks, and increasing expectations for cross-border integration.
This research provides a comprehensive review of operational challenges, strategic considerations, global case studies, and direct insights from a survey executed and compiled by the Arab Federation of Capital Markets (AFCM), covering the major Arab CSDs, by providing a comprehensive assessment of where the major Arab CSDs stand today and what strategic pathways lie ahead, while placing them within the broader context of international CSD development around the globe, offering models for adaptation in Arab markets.
