Euroclear Cash+ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

The Euroclear Cash+ service allows shareholders to maximise the value of their elective dividends, ensuring they receive the highest financial return with no additional hassle.

When a shareholder elects for Euroclear Cash+, the shareholder requests Euroclear to action the Euroclear Cash+ standing instruction included in Euroclear’s Terms and Conditions. Under the standing instruction, the shareholder instructs Euroclear to determine if the net cash value to the shareholder upon the sale of the shares that would be received on the stock election, exceeds the net value of the cash dividend. If that is the case, under the standing instruction the client will have elected for stock followed by the immediate sale by Euroclear to a broker on the shareholder’s behalf using a trade that settles on the date on which cash dividends are due to be paid out (a long-dated trade).

The client will only ever receive cash, with the cash dividend amount guaranteed as the minimum amount of cash the shareholder will receive. The Euroclear Cash+ dividend will be received at the same time and in the same way as the normal cash dividend.

Yes, the cash amount received under the Euroclear Cash+ election is a real dividend. It is not a dividend substitution or manufactured dividend. If the optimal dividend is cash, the shareholder receives the normal cash dividend. If the optimal dividend is shares, the shares will be sold on behalf of the shareholder (using a long-dated trade) at the same time as the stock election is made. As such, the shareholder will only ever receive the immediate value of the stock dividend.

The custodian simply notifies their clients of the three available options, Cash, Stock, Euroclear Cash+. After receiving the client’s election, it will pass that election on to Euroclear in the normal course of business.

No. Euroclear does not provide the service of portfolio management. Euroclear does not make any investment decision and does not provide investment advice.

Yes. The sale of UK/EU-listed shares will fall within the scope of the MiFIR post trade transparency requirements and to the extent that such trades are carried out OTC (i.e. not on a UK/EU regulated market or a Multilateral Trading Facility (MTF)). Details of sale of shares in UK/EU-listed shares that are carried out as part of the Euroclear Cash+ election, will be made public by the broker that acts as the counterparty to the long-dated trade within one minute of the transaction being executed (subject to the ability to defer publication for trades that are large in size).

Yes. Euroclear is transmitting an order under the Markets in Financial Instruments Regulation (MiFIR). Euroclear, as receiving firm, is reporting this transaction. Firms transmitting the Euroclear Cash+ election to Euroclear should be exempt from reporting as the responsibility for reporting shifts to the receiving firm, i.e. Euroclear under the MiFIR.

Yes, Euroclear will take an ad valorem charge but only on any additional value generated through Euroclear Cash+. Euroclear will distribute 50% to the client and retain the remaining 50% as processing fee for Euroclear Cash+ service.

For the avoidance of doubt, 100% of the cash dividend amount is distributed to the client. Euroclear will only charge the processing fee on the additional value and only when additional value is generated by the Euroclear Cash+ service.

The service does not interfere with the applicable withholding tax and how it is applied by each ESES country.
Belgium: Payments are made with maximum tax for both cash and securities proceeds by issuer agent.
France: Payments are made gross and the participant acts as withholding agent based on the beneficial owner tax profile.
Netherlands: Payments are made with maximum tax on cash proceeds and security payments. No withholding tax is applied.