Managing failed trades and ex-clearing obligations across multiple systems can be complex, inefficient, and opaque, especially when firms lack a centralized view of their unsettled positions. DTCC’s Obligation Warehouse (OW) addresses this challenge by providing a single, automated platform for tracking and resolving these obligations in real-time. OW facilitates the bilateral matching of obligations submitted by Members for U.S. securities, including equities, corporates, and unit investment trusts. This centralized service handles both ex-clearing and failed obligations in real-time and is not a guaranteed service of the National Securities Clearing Corporation (NSCC).

Once submitted and matched, OW stores eligible unsettled obligations – such as securities exited from NSCC’s CNS® system, Non-CNS® Automated Customer Account Transfer Service (ACATS) items, NSCC Balance Order transactions, and Special Trades – in a central repository.  The service maintains and updates these obligations until they are settled, cancelled, or otherwise closed. Daily checks are performed to identify CNS®-eligible items, and certain mandatory corporate actions are applied periodically. OW also provides enhanced and more frequent recapitalization (RECAPS) processing on a pre-announced schedule.  

NSCC Members

All NSCC Members may use the OW service, and full-service broker-dealer Members are required by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) Rules to participate in RECAPS.