Overview:

The Eurosystem Collateral Management System (ECMS) is a project launched by the Eurosystem and it is aimed to replace the current system used by the 19 National Central Banks for managing assets used as collateral in Eurosystem credit operations. The move to a single and unified system will lead to a common shared set of requirements across Europe which will in turn contribute to a full financial integration across European capital markets.

The ECMS interacts with:

1. The Central Liquidity Management (CLM) and Real-Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) modules within Target2 (T2) for payments settlement and credit line updates
2. Target2Securities (T2S) for securities settlement and auto-collateralization
3. The common components for the support functionalities

Main impacts:

In order to implement the new process, counterparties must:

• Conduct the mandatory testing activities to review the new functionalities of ECMS platform and to confirm the connection to ECMS graphical user interface (GUI).
• Adapt their IT systems to the Eurosystem Single Market Infrastructure Gateway (ESMIG), which is network-provider agnostic allowing to connect ECMS with counterparties, central securities depositories (CSDs) and triparty agents (TPAs).
• Decide how to connect to ECMS choosing between Application-to-Application (A2A) and/or User-to-Application (U2A) mode, and set up a plan.
• Move from ISO15022 MT to ISO20022 XML messages, an open global standard that offers a common and globally understandable language for the mobilization and demobilization of marketable assets.

Main benefits:

• Harmonized collateral management activities.
• Open stream of cash and securities across Europe through a single system.
• Common functionalities for all eurozone jurisdictions (T2-T2S Consolidation).
• Operational and cost efficiency by ensuring a common billing system.
• High security levels with a common reference data component.
• No alteration of the existing business and legal relationships between counterparties and national central banks (principle of decentralization unaffected).

Sources

• What is the Eurosystem Collateral Management System (ECMS)? (europa.eu)
• T2-T2S consolidation: what is it? (europa.eu)
• Banque centrale du Luxembourg - ECMS (Project) (bcl.lu)
• Business Description Document for the ECMS (europa.eu)