ISO 10962:2021
(Main)Securities and related financial instruments — Classification of financial instruments (CFI) code
Securities and related financial instruments — Classification of financial instruments (CFI) code
This document defines and describes the structure for the codes for an internationally valid system to classify financial instruments. The classification system applies to financial instruments negotiated internationally as well as to domestic instruments. The term “financial instruments” refers not only to classical securities and derivatives but also covers the innovative financial products that have emerged in different markets (a trend that is expected to continue in the future). This document is intended for use in any application in the trading and administration of financial instruments in the international securities business. Insofar as the trading and administration of securities do not affect other countries, the application of this document remains at the discretion of the responsible national bodies, such as stock exchanges, banks, brokers, regulatory bodies and other institutions active in the securities field. In principle, the CFI code reflects characteristics that are defined when a financial instrument is issued and that remain unchanged during its entire lifetime. However, a few events that can lead to a new CFI code for the same instrument are anticipated, such as the changing of voting rights or ownership restrictions by a stockholders' meeting.
Valeurs mobilières et autres instruments financiers concernés — Classification des instruments financiers (code CFI)
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INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 10962
Redline version
compares ISO 10962:2021
to ISO 10962:2019
Securities and related financial
instruments — Classification of
financial instruments (CFI) code
Valeurs mobilières et autres instruments financiers concernés —
Classification des instruments financiers (code CFI)
Reference number
ISO 10962:redline:2021(E)
©
ISO 2021
---------------------- Page: 1 ----------------------
ISO 10962:redline:2021(E)
IMPORTANT
This marked-up version uses the following colour-coding in the marked-up text:
Text example 1 — Text has been added (in green)
— Text has been deleted (in red)
Text example 2
— Graphic figure has been added
— Graphic figure has been deleted
1.x . — If there are changes in a clause/subclause, the corresponding clause/
subclause number is highlighted in yellow in the Table of contents
DISCLAIMER
This marked-up version highlights the main changes in this edition of the document
compared with the previous edition. It does not focus on details (e.g. changes in
punctuation).
This marked-up version does not constitute the official ISO document and is not intended to
be used for implementation purposes.
COPYRIGHT PROTECTED DOCUMENT
© ISO 2021
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting
on the internet or an intranet, without prior written permission. Permission can be requested from either ISO at the address
below or ISO’s member body in the country of the requester.
ISO copyright office
CP 401 • Ch. de Blandonnet 8
CH-1214 Vernier, Geneva
Phone: +41 22 749 01 11
Fax: +41 22 749 09 47
Email: copyright@iso.org
Website: www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
ii © ISO 2021 – All rights reserved
---------------------- Page: 2 ----------------------
ISO 10962:redline:2021(E)
Contents Page
Foreword .vi
Introduction .viii
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
4 Conventions and principles . 2
4.2 4.1 General . 3
4.3 4.2 Category . 4
4.4 4.3 Group . 4
4.5 4.4 Attributes . 5
4.5 Semantic model of the external code list for the CFI . 5
5 CFI code allocation . 6
5.1 General . 6
5.2 Existing CFIs CFI codes and existing securities financial instruments without a CFI code . 7
6 Codes and definitions Maintenance. 7
6.1 Categories . 7
6.2 Equities - E-*-*-*-*-*- . 7
6.2.1 Description . . . 7
6.2.2 Common/ordinary shares - E-S-*-*-*-*- . 8
6.2.3 Preferred/preference shares - E-P-*-*-*-*- . 8
6.2.4 Common/ordinary convertible shares - E-C-*-*-*-*- .10
6.2.5 Preferred/preference convertible shares - E-F-*-*-*-*- .10
6.2.6 Limited partnership units - E-L-*-*-*-*- . .11
6.2.7 Depositary receipts on equities - E-D-*-*-*-*- .11
6.2.8 Structured instruments (participation) - E-Y-*-*-*-*- .12
6.2.9 Others (miscellaneous) - E-M-X-X-X-*- .14
6.3 CIVs - C-*-*-*-*-*- .14
6.3.1 Description . . .14
6.3.2 Standard (vanilla) investment funds/mutual funds - C-I-*-*-*-*- .14
6.3.3 Hedge funds - C-H-*-X-X-X- .15
6.3.4 REITs - C-B-*-*-X-*-.16
6.3.5 ETFs - C-E-*-*-*-*- .17
6.3.6 Pension funds - C-S-*-*-*-*- .18
6.3.7 Funds of funds - C-F-*-*-*-*- .18
6.3.8 Private equity funds - C-P-*-*-*-*- .19
6.3.9 Others (miscellaneous) - C-M-X-X-X-*-.19
6.4 Debt instruments - D-*-*-*-*-*- .20
6.4.1 Description . . .20
6.4.2 Bonds - D-B-*-*-*-*- .20
6.4.3 Convertible bonds - D-C-*-*-*-*- .22
6.4.4 Bonds with warrants attached - D-W-*-*-*-*- .23
6.4.5 Medium term notes - D-T-*-*-*-*- .24
6.4.6 Money market instruments - D-Y-*-*-X-*- .25
6.4.7 Structured instruments (capital protection) - D-S-*-*-*-*- .25
6.4.8 Structured instruments (without capital protection) - D-E-*-*-*-*- .27
6.4.9 Mortgage-backed securities - D-G-*-*-*-*- .29
6.4.10 Asset-backed securities - D-A-*-*-*-*- .30
6.4.11 Municipal bonds - D-N-*-*-*-*- .31
6.4.12 Depositary receipts on debt instruments - D-D-*-*-*-*- .32
6.4.13 Others (miscellaneous) - D-M-*-X-X-*- .33
6.5 Entitlements (rights) - R-*-*-*-*-*- .33
6.5.1 Description . . .33
© ISO 2021 – All rights reserved iii
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ISO 10962:redline:2021(E)
6.5.2 Allotment (bonus) rights - R-A-X-X-X-*- .33
6.5.3 Subscription rights - R-S-*-X-X-*- .34
6.5.4 Purchase rights - R-P-*-X-X-*- .34
6.5.5 Warrants - R-W-*-*-*-*- .35
6.5.6 Mini-future certificates/constant leverage certificates - R-F-*-*-*-*- .36
6.5.7 Depositary receipts on entitlements - R-D-*-X-X-*- .36
6.5.8 Others (miscellaneous) - R-M-X-X-X-X- .37
6.6 Listed options - O-*-*-*-*-*- .37
6.6.1 Description . . .37
6.6.2 Call options - O-C-*-*-*-*- .37
6.6.3 Put options - O-P-*-*-*-*- .38
6.6.4 Others (miscellaneous) - O-M-X-X-X-X- .39
6.7 Futures - F-*-*-*-*-X- .39
6.7.1 Description . . .39
6.7.2 Financial futures - F-F-*-*-*-X- .39
6.7.3 Commodities futures - F-C-*-*-*-X- .40
6.8 Swaps - S-*-*-*-*-*- .40
6.8.1 Description . . .40
6.8.2 Rates - S-R-*-*-*-*- .41
6.8.3 Commodities - S-T-*-*-X-*- .42
6.8.4 Equity - S-E-*-*-X-*- .43
6.8.5 Credit - S-C-*-*-*-*- . .44
6.8.6 Foreign exchange - S-F-*-X-X-*- .45
6.8.7 Others (miscellaneous) - S-M-*-X-X-*- .46
6.9 Non-listed and complex listed options - H-*-*-*-*-*- .46
6.9.1 Description . . .46
6.9.2 Rates - H-R-*-*-*-*- .47
6.9.3 Commodities - H-T-*-*-*-*- .49
6.9.4 Equity - H-E-*-*-*-*- .50
6.9.5 Credit - H-C-*-*-*-*- .51
6.9.6 Foreign exchange - H-F-*-*-*-*- .52
6.9.7 Others (miscellaneous) - H-M-*-*-*-*- .53
6.10 Spot - I-*-*-X-X-*- .54
6.10.1 Description . . .54
6.10.2 Foreign exchange - I-F-X-X-X-P- .54
6.10.3 Commodities - I-T-*-X-X-X- .54
6.11 Forwards - J-*-*-X-*-*- .55
6.11.1 Description . . .55
6.11.2 Equity - J-E-*-X-*-*- .55
6.11.3 Foreign exchange - J-F-*-X-*-*- .55
6.11.4 Credit - J-C-*-X-*-*- .56
6.11.5 Rates - J-R-*-X-*-*- .57
6.11.6 Commodities - J-T-*-X-*-*- .57
6.12 Strategies - K-*-X-X-X-X- .58
6.12.1 Description . . .58
6.12.2 Rates - K-R-X-X-X-X- .58
6.12.3 Commodities - K-T-X-X-X-X- .58
6.12.4 Equity - K-E-X-X-X-X- .58
6.12.5 Credit - K-C-X-X-X-X- .59
6.12.6 Foreign exchange - K-F-X-X-X-X- .59
6.12.7 Mixed assets - K-Y-X-X-X-X- .59
6.12.8 Others (miscellaneous) - K-M-X-X-X-X- .59
6.13 Financing - L-*-*-*-X-*- .59
6.13.1 Description . . .59
6.13.2 Loan-lease - L-L-*-X-X-*- .60
6.13.3 Repurchase agreements - L-R-*-*-X-*- .60
6.13.4 Securities lending - L-S-*-*-X-*- .61
6.14 Referential instruments - T-*-*-*-*-X- .62
iv © ISO 2021 – All rights reserved
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ISO 10962:redline:2021(E)
6.14.1 Description . . .62
6.14.2 Currencies - T-C-*-X-X-X- .62
6.14.3 Commodities - T-T-*-X-X-X- .62
6.14.4 Interest rates - T-R-*-*-X-X- . .63
6.14.5 Indices - T-I-*-*-*-X- .63
6.14.6 Baskets - T-B-*-X-X-X- . .64
6.14.7 Stock dividends - T-D-*-X-X-X- .65
6.14.8 Others (miscellaneous) - T-M-X-X-X-X- .65
6.15 Others (miscellaneous) - M-*-*-*-X-*- .65
6.15.1 Description . . .65
6.15.2 Combined instruments - M-C-*-*-X-*- .65
6.15.3 Other assets - M-M-*-X-X-X- .66
Annex A
(informative)
Classification examples .67
Bibliography .74
© ISO 2021 – All rights reserved v
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ISO 10962:redline:2021(E)
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out
through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical
committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work.
ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of
electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the
different types of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www .iso .org/ directives).
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights. Details of
any patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the Introduction and/or
on the ISO list of patent declarations received (see www .iso .org/ patents).
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and
expressions related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to the
World Trade Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), see www .iso .org/
iso/ foreword .htmlwww .iso .org/ iso/ foreword .html.
This document was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 68, Financial services, Subcommittee SC 8,
Reference data for financial services.
This fourthfifth edition cancels and replaces the thirdfourth edition (ISO 10962:20152019), which
has been technically revised. The main changes to the previous edition are as follows: six -character
hierarchical structure remains unchanged from the previous version.
The main changes to the previous edition are as follows:
— The CFI code list has been removed from the specification and moved to an external code list.
— To address industry requirements for the classification of derivative instruments,The structure of
the CFI and content of 6.8, 6.9 and 6.11 have been amended, where the support for multi-commodity
derivatives, the addition of exercise styles not connected to option type (put or call) and the
ability to classify foreign exchange derivatives for single currencies and a basket of currencies are
includedthe code list are captured in the form of a machine-readable semantical model of the code
lists and their values. It is important to understand that this is a semantic representation of the CFI
hierarchical structure and not a canonical semantic classification of financial instruments, which is
beyond the scope of this document.
— In 6.8The CFI external code list is maintained and published by the ISO 10962, changes have been
introduced for the identification of deliverable/non-deliverable for swap products. maintenance
agency, which is responsible for managing the modification and enhancement of the code lists, their
values and corresponding descriptions. The maintenance agency is responsible for publishing the
CFI code list. The CFI external code list is published in a selection of human-readable and machine-
readable data formats [e.g. spreadsheet, PDF, comma-separated values (CSV), JSON-LD, TTL] at
the discretion of the maintenance agency. See https:// www .iso .org/ maintenance _agencies .html
#81140.
— Rolling foreign exchange spot contracts have been included in 6.11.
vi © ISO 2021 – All rights reserved
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ISO 10962:redline:2021(E)
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found at www .iso .org/ members .html.
© ISO 2021 – All rights reserved vii
---------------------- Page: 7 ----------------------
ISO 10962:redline:2021(E)
Introduction
The classification of financial instruments (CFI) code was developed to address a number of problems
which haveseveral problems that concerned the financial community. With the growth of cross-border
trading, the requirement to improve communication of information among market participants hashad
become critical.
The business problems centrecentred around an inability to obtain information on securitiesfinancial
instruments due to the lack of a consistent and uniform approach to grouping financial instruments.
With the explosive growth over the pastprevious 20 years in new instruments and features attached to
financial instruments, a serious communication problem hashad developed.
Many market participants arewere using similar terminology for instruments having significantly
different features. The problem isThis problem was compounded when market participants looklooked
beyond their own national markets. They encounter where they encountered the same words used to
describe instruments in another country, which havewith significantly different features. Where the
terminology iswas in a different language, the market participant encounters the problem of the same
words being applied to different instruments along with themarket participants encountered additional
problems of translation, which also can also be misleading.
In addition, the customs and practices of local markets varyvaried considerably in the manner in which
they structurehow they structured financial instruments, often leaving foreign participants confused
and perplexed. On careful anal
...
INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 10962
Fifth edition
2021-05
Securities and related financial
instruments — Classification of
financial instruments (CFI) code
Valeurs mobilières et autres instruments financiers concernés —
Classification des instruments financiers (code CFI)
Reference number
ISO 10962:2021(E)
©
ISO 2021
---------------------- Page: 1 ----------------------
ISO 10962:2021(E)
COPYRIGHT PROTECTED DOCUMENT
© ISO 2021
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting
on the internet or an intranet, without prior written permission. Permission can be requested from either ISO at the address
below or ISO’s member body in the country of the requester.
ISO copyright office
CP 401 • Ch. de Blandonnet 8
CH-1214 Vernier, Geneva
Phone: +41 22 749 01 11
Email: copyright@iso.org
Website: www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
ii © ISO 2021 – All rights reserved
---------------------- Page: 2 ----------------------
ISO 10962:2021(E)
Contents Page
Foreword .iv
Introduction .v
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
4 Conventions and principles . 2
4.1 General . 2
4.2 Category . 4
4.3 Group . 4
4.4 Attributes . 4
4.5 Semantic model of the external code list for the CFI . 4
5 CFI code allocation . 6
5.1 General . 6
5.2 Existing CFI codes and existing financial instruments without a CFI code . 7
6 Maintenance . 7
Annex A (informative) Classification examples. 8
Bibliography . 9
© ISO 2021 – All rights reserved iii
---------------------- Page: 3 ----------------------
ISO 10962:2021(E)
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out
through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical
committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work.
ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of
electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the
different types of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www .iso .org/ directives).
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights. Details of
any patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the Introduction and/or
on the ISO list of patent declarations received (see www .iso .org/ patents).
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and
expressions related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to the
World Trade Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), see www .iso .org/
iso/ foreword .html.
This document was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 68, Financial services, Subcommittee SC 8,
Reference data for financial services.
This fifth edition cancels and replaces the fourth edition (ISO 10962:2019), which has been technically
revised. The six-character hierarchical structure remains unchanged from the previous version.
The main changes to the previous edition are as follows:
— The CFI code list has been removed from the specification and moved to an external code list.
— The structure of the CFI and content of the code list are captured in the form of a machine-readable
semantical model of the code lists and their values. It is important to understand that this is a
semantic representation of the CFI hierarchical structure and not a canonical semantic classification
of financial instruments, which is beyond the scope of this document.
— The CFI external code list is maintained and published by the ISO 10962 maintenance agency, which
is responsible for managing the modification and enhancement of the code lists, their values and
corresponding descriptions. The maintenance agency is responsible for publishing the CFI code list.
The CFI external code list is published in a selection of human-readable and machine-readable data
formats [e.g. spreadsheet, PDF, comma-separated values (CSV), JSON-LD, TTL] at the discretion of
the maintenance agency. See https:// www .iso .org/ maintenance _agencies .html #81140.
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found at www .iso .org/ members .html.
iv © ISO 2021 – All rights reserved
---------------------- Page: 4 ----------------------
ISO 10962:2021(E)
Introduction
The classification of financial instruments (CFI) code was developed to address several problems
that concerned the financial community. With the growth of cross-border trading, the requirement to
improve communication of information among market participants had become critical.
The business problems centred around an inability to obtain information on financial instruments due
to the lack of a consistent and uniform approach to grouping financial instruments. With the explosive
growth over the previous 20 years in new instruments and features attached to financial instruments,
a serious communication problem had developed.
Many market participants were using similar terminology for instruments having significantly different
features. This problem was compounded when market participants looked beyond their own national
markets where they encountered the same words used to describe instruments with significantly
different features. Where the terminology was in a different language, market participants encountered
additional problems of translation, which can also be misleading.
In addition, the customs and practices of local markets varied considerably in how they structured
financial instruments, often leaving foreign participants perplexed. On careful analysis, it was often
found that the characteristics and features of these instruments were similar to domestic instruments.
However, most market participants did not have the time and resources to do this analysis.
The inability to group financial instruments in a consistent manner was another problem encountered
by market participants. Reports of holdings by different sources for similar financial instruments
often resulted in those instruments being categorized differently. This not only affected comparability
but caused a credibility issue with the reader. When relative performance is measured, the ability to
properly categorize holdings is essential if true comparisons are to be made.
A twofold solution was developed to address these problems. One was to establish a series of codes that
classify financial instruments having similar features. The other was to develop a glossary of terms and
provide common definitions that allow market participants to easily understand the terminology being
used.
The benefits derived are many:
— The CFI code system provides a set of codes for financial instruments that can be used globally
for straight-through processing by all involved participants in an electronic data processing
environment. For example, readers of portfolio holdings see reports from different sources using
the same categories, groups and attributes, making the comparison of instruments more credible.
— The use of these codes increases the efficiency, reliability, data consistency and transparency of
financial services transactions for both market and reference data. Classifying financial instruments
in a consistent, structured and standardized way is also beneficial for regulatory reporting
requirements.
— The broadened scope and coverage of CFI codes encourages market participants to take advantage of
other International Standards, particularly international securities identification numbers (ISINs).
— It is intended that the improved understanding of the characteristics and categorization leads to
a better understanding of financial instruments. This leads to more active markets and improved
market liquidity. In addition, these codes are displayed on websites using internet technology, which
has allowed the growth of e-issuing, e-trading and e-settlements.
— The CFI code system can further serve as a basis for the classification of financial instruments for
industry risk aggregation and regulatory reporting.
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) draws attention to the fact that it is claimed
that compliance with this document may involve the use of a patent.
ISO takes no position concerning the evidence, validity and scope of this patent right.
© ISO 2021 – All rights reserved v
---------------------- Page: 5 ----------------------
ISO 10962:2021(E)
The holder of this patent right has assured ISO that he or she is willing to negotiate licences under
reasonable and non-discriminatory terms and conditions with applicants throughout the world. In
this respect, the statement of the holder of this patent right is registered with ISO. Information may be
obtained from the patent database available at www .iso .org/ patents.
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights other than those in the patent database. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying
...
INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 10962
Fifth edition
Securities and related financial
instruments — Classification of
financial instruments (CFI) code
Valeurs mobilières et autres instruments financiers concernés —
Classification des instruments financiers (code CFI)
PROOF/ÉPREUVE
Reference number
ISO 10962:2021(E)
©
ISO 2021
---------------------- Page: 1 ----------------------
ISO 10962:2021(E)
COPYRIGHT PROTECTED DOCUMENT
© ISO 2021
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting
on the internet or an intranet, without prior written permission. Permission can be requested from either ISO at the address
below or ISO’s member body in the country of the requester.
ISO copyright office
CP 401 • Ch. de Blandonnet 8
CH-1214 Vernier, Geneva
Phone: +41 22 749 01 11
Email: copyright@iso.org
Website: www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
ii PROOF/ÉPREUVE © ISO 2021 – All rights reserved
---------------------- Page: 2 ----------------------
ISO 10962:2021(E)
Contents Page
Foreword .iv
Introduction .v
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
4 Conventions and principles . 2
4.1 General . 2
4.2 Category . 4
4.3 Group . 4
4.4 Attributes . 4
4.5 Semantic model of the external code list for the CFI . 4
5 CFI code allocation . 6
5.1 General . 6
5.2 Existing CFI codes and existing financial instruments without a CFI code . 7
6 Maintenance . 7
Annex A (informative) Classification examples. 8
Bibliography . 9
© ISO 2021 – All rights reserved PROOF/ÉPREUVE iii
---------------------- Page: 3 ----------------------
ISO 10962:2021(E)
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out
through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical
committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work.
ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of
electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the
different types of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www .iso .org/ directives).
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights. Details of
any patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the Introduction and/or
on the ISO list of patent declarations received (see www .iso .org/ patents).
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and
expressions related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to the
World Trade Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), see www .iso .org/
iso/ foreword .html.
This document was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 68, Financial services, Subcommittee SC 8,
Reference data for financial services.
This fifth edition cancels and replaces the fourth edition (ISO 10962:2019), which has been technically
revised. The six-character hierarchical structure remains unchanged from the previous version.
The main changes to the previous edition are as follows:
— The CFI code list has been removed from the specification and moved to an external code list.
— The structure of the CFI and content of the code list are captured in the form of a machine-readable
semantical model of the code lists and their values. It is important to understand that this is a
semantic representation of the CFI hierarchical structure and not a canonical semantic classification
of financial instruments, which is beyond the scope of this document.
— The CFI external code list is maintained and published by the ISO 10962 maintenance agency, which
is responsible for managing the modification and enhancement of the code lists, their values and
corresponding descriptions. The maintenance agency is responsible for publishing the CFI code list.
The CFI external code list is published in a selection of human-readable and machine-readable data
formats [e.g. spreadsheet, PDF, comma-separated values (CSV), JSON-LD, TTL] at the discretion of
the maintenance agency. See https:// www .iso .org/ maintenance _agencies .html #81140.
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found at www .iso .org/ members .html.
iv PROOF/ÉPREUVE © ISO 2021 – All rights reserved
---------------------- Page: 4 ----------------------
ISO 10962:2021(E)
Introduction
The classification of financial instruments (CFI) code was developed to address several problems
that concerned the financial community. With the growth of cross-border trading, the requirement to
improve communication of information among market participants had become critical.
The business problems centred around an inability to obtain information on financial instruments due
to the lack of a consistent and uniform approach to grouping financial instruments. With the explosive
growth over the previous 20 years in new instruments and features attached to financial instruments,
a serious communication problem had developed.
Many market participants were using similar terminology for instruments having significantly different
features. This problem was compounded when market participants looked beyond their own national
markets where they encountered the same words used to describe instruments with significantly
different features. Where the terminology was in a different language, market participants encountered
additional problems of translation, which can also be misleading.
In addition, the customs and practices of local markets varied considerably in how they structured
financial instruments, often leaving foreign participants perplexed. On careful analysis, it was often
found that the characteristics and features of these instruments were similar to domestic instruments.
However, most market participants did not have the time and resources to do this analysis.
The inability to group financial instruments in a consistent manner was another problem encountered
by market participants. Reports of holdings by different sources for similar financial instruments
often resulted in those instruments being categorized differently. This not only affected comparability
but caused a credibility issue with the reader. When relative performance is measured, the ability to
properly categorize holdings is essential if true comparisons are to be made.
A twofold solution was developed to address these problems. One was to establish a series of codes that
classify financial instruments having similar features. The other was to develop a glossary of terms
and provide common definitions that allow market participants to easily understand the terminology
being used.
The benefits derived are many:
— The CFI code system provides a set of codes for financial instruments that can be used globally
for straight-through processing by all involved participants in an electronic data processing
environment. For example, readers of portfolio holdings see reports from different sources using
the same categories, groups and attributes, making the comparison of instruments more credible.
— The use of these codes increases the efficiency, reliability, data consistency and transparency of
financial services transactions for both market and reference data. Classifying financial instruments
in a consistent, structured and standardized way is also beneficial for regulatory reporting
requirements.
— The broadened scope and coverage of CFI codes encourages market participants to take advantage of
other International Standards, particularly international securities identification numbers (ISINs).
— It is intended that the improved understanding of the characteristics and categorization leads to
a better understanding of financial instruments. This leads to more active markets and improved
market liquidity. In addition, these codes are displayed on websites using internet technology, which
has allowed the growth of e-issuing, e-trading and e-settlements.
— The CFI code system can further serve as a basis for the classification of financial instruments for
industry risk aggregation and regulatory reporting.
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) draws attention to the fact that it is claimed
that compliance with this document may involve the use of a patent.
ISO takes no position concerning the evidence, validity and scope of this patent right.
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ISO 10962:2021(E)
The holder of this patent right has assured ISO that he or she is willing to negotiate licences under
reasonable and non-discriminatory terms and conditions with applicants throughout the world. In
this respect, the statement of the holder of this patent right is registered with ISO. Information may be
obtained from the patent database available at www .iso .org/ patents.
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights other than those in the patent database. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying
any or all such patent rights.
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