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DSB operates on a cost recovery basis where annual user fees recover the Total DSB Costs. Annual user fees are derived using a fee model calculation which comprises the variables Total DSB Cost, Number of Infrequent Users, Number of Standard Users, Search Only API Users and Number of Power Users fixed no later than the end of the first Working Day in December each year, as per the DSB Charges Policy.
Following user feedback in 2020, the fee model determination period has been brought forward to October to better align with users’ budgetary processes.
2024 Fee Model Variables:
The DSB currently provides access to OTC ISIN data to more than 600 organisations, across 33 jurisdictions of which 71% consumer the data free of charge. Fee paying user numbers reflecta small reduction in Power Users since October 2022, with 131 fee paying users as of 4 October 2023. The below Fee Model Variables table will be updated quarterly:
2024 OTC ISIN Forecast Total DSB Cost
| Fee Variable | Values as at 4 Oct 2023 | Values as at 31 Dec 2023 |
| Estimated Total DSB Cost | €11.79m | €11.79m |
| Number of Infrequent Users | 42 | 49 |
| Number of Standard Users | 11 | 11 |
| Number of Search Only API Users | 5 | 7 |
| Number of Power Users | 72 | 74 |
| Number of UAT Only Users | 1 | 1 |
Annual user fees recover the DSB overhead costs which include a 20% margin for financial sustainability. The 2024 OTC ISIN Forecast Total DSB Cost reflects the normal and expected yearly adjustments, such as inflation.
In accordance with the DSB Charges Policy, Excess Fee Income resulting from additional contracts as well as operating cost efficiencies, go to defraying the OTC ISIN Forecast Total DSB Cost for the contract year following the audited statutory accounts.
The DSB’s continued focus on cost-efficiency has resulted in operating expenditure of €600K below the 2022 budget. This saving, together with an additional €118K of revenue above the 2022 revenue expectations, due to intra-year new user agreements, has resulted in an Excess Fee Income reduction of €718K against the 2024 OTC ISIN Forecast Total DSB Cost.
The number of new trading venues and upgrades throughout 2023 is greater than the number of trading venues closed however, some Power users have downgraded to the Search Only User type resulting in a net reduction of 1 Power user.
The tables below show the breakdown of the 2024 OTC ISIN Forecast Total DSB Cost upon which the 2024 annual user fees were calculated and includes the 20% margin for financial sustainability:
| Category (Recurring) | Description | Amount |
| Technology & Operations | Operation of the DSB platform including technical and asset class support | €9,039K |
| Management | Senior management team including MD, MSP management team and CFO | €1,263K |
| Administration | Administrative costs and overheads such as office space, travel and expenses and administrative support functions | €1,121K |
| External consultants | External oversight, legal, professional & stakeholder outreach | €498K |
| Previous Year Operating Expenditure Adjustment | Excess Fee Income reduction based on the DSB Statutory Accounts 2021 | -€718K |
| Total | €11,202K |
| Category (Time-Limited) | Description | Amount |
| Build Costs / Capex | Amortization of build costs 2020-2023 | €590K |
| Total | €590K |
Build Costs / Capex Amortisation Analysis
DSB Build Costs / Capital Expenditure (Capex) are amortised over 4 years, starting from the year after the service/functionality goes live, as approved via industry consultation. On this basis, Build Costs are funded by the DSB’s financial sustainability margin with 25% of the cost incorporated into the cost basis for the four years following build of the service/functionality. Build Costs are based on the known evolution of the service which is driven by industry consultation. Therefore, Build Costs / Capex for 2025 onwards will be provided when details are known. The below table provides an overview of the consolidated amortisation for the period 2020-2024:
| Amortisation Analysis | Estimate 2024 | Forecast 2025 | Forecast 2026 | Forecast 2027 | Forecast 2028 |
| Amortisation of Build Costs/CapEx | €590K | €711K | €675K | €281K | €174K |
| Amortisation of build costs 2020 | €54K | ||||
| Amortisation of build costs 2021 | €35K | €35K | |||
| Amortisation of build costs 2022 | €395K | €395K | €395K | ||
| Amortisation of build costs 2023 | €106K | €106K | €106K | €106K | |
| Amortisation of build costs 2024 | €174K | €174K | €174K | €174K |
The 2021, 2022 and 2023 Capex figures differ from the prior year table due to Board agreed rollover from 2021 to 2022 and another rollover from 2022 to 2023.
2023 Fee Model Variables:
The DSB currently provides access to OTC ISIN data to more than 500 organisations, across 33 jurisdictions, of which 70% consume the data free of charge. Fee paying user numbers reflect a reduction in Power Users since October 2021, with 124 fee paying users as of 5 October 2022.
2023 OTC ISIN Forecast Total DSB Cost
| Fee Variable | Values as at 5 Oct 2022 | Values as at 31 Dec 2022 | Values as at 31 Mar 2023 | Values as at 30 Jun 2023 |
| Estimated Total DSB Cost | €11.55m | €11.55m | €11.55m | €11.55m |
| Number of Infrequent Users | 40 | 40 | 41 | 41 |
| Number of Standard Users | 10 | 10 | 11 | 11 |
| Number of Search Only API Users | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| Number of Power Users | 73 | 73 | 74 | 75 |
| Number of UAT Only Users | N/A | N/A | N/A | 1 |
Annual user fees recover the DSB overhead costs which include a 20% margin for financial sustainability. The 2023 OTC ISIN Forecast Total DSB Cost reflects the normal and expected yearly adjustments, such as inflation, in addition to service evolution activity resulting from the 2022 industry annual consultation process, such as proceeding with the Global Agile Architecture two-year programme of work, undertaking a detailed review of the DSB’s enterprise tooling estate, improving the GUI search utility, supporting CFI retrieval through the GUI and achieving savings with the removal of the VPN connectivity option.
In accordance with the DSB Charges Policy, Excess Fee Income resulting from additional contracts as well as operating cost efficiencies, go to defraying the OTC ISIN Forecast Total DSB Cost for the contract year following the audited statutory accounts.
The DSB’s continued focus on cost-efficiency has resulted in operating expenditure of €333K below the 2021 budget. This saving, together with an additional €471K of revenue above the 2021 revenue expectations, due to intra-year new user agreements, has resulted in an Excess Fee Income reduction of €804K against the 2023 OTC ISIN Forecast Total DSB Cost.
The reduction of 6 Power Users, primarily due to closure of MTF/OTF market operations and a lower Excess Fee Income combined with lower capital expenditure applied in 2023 compared to 2022, has impacted the outcome of user fees for 2023, resulting in an annual fee increase.
The tables below show the breakdown of the 2023 OTC ISIN Forecast Total DSB Cost upon which the 2023 annual user fees were calculated and includes the 20% margin for financial sustainability:
| Category (Recurring) | Description | Amount |
| Technology & Operations | Operation of the DSB platform including technical and asset class support | €8,604K |
| Management | Senior management team including MD, MSP management team and CFO | €1,321K |
| Administration | Administrative costs and overheads such as office space, travel and expenses and administrative support functions | €1,193K |
| External consultants | External oversight, legal, professional & stakeholder outreach | €498K |
| Previous Year Operating Expenditure Adjustment | Excess Fee Income reduction based on the DSB Statutory Accounts 2021 | -€804K |
| Total | €10,812K |
| Category (Time-Limited) | Description | Amount |
| Build Costs / Capex | Amortization of build costs 2020-2023 | €743K |
| Total | €743K |
Build Costs / Capex Amortisation Analysis
DSB Build Costs / Capital Expenditure (Capex) are amortized over 4 years, starting from the year after the service/functionality goes live, as approved via industry consultation. On this basis, Build Costs are funded by the DSB’s financial sustainability margin with 25% of the cost incorporated into the cost basis for the four years following build of the service/functionality. Build Costs are based on the known evolution of the service which is driven by industry consultation. Therefore, Build Costs / Capex for 2024 onwards will be provided when details are known. The below table provides an overview of the consolidated amortisation for the period 2019-2023:
| Amortisation Analysis | Estimate 2023 | Forecast 2024 | Forecast 2025 | Forecast 2026 | Forecast 2027 |
| Amortisation of Build Costs/CapEx | €743K | €621K | €568K | €461K | €75K |
| Amortisation of build costs 2019 | €196K | ||||
| Amortisation of build costs 2020 | €54K | €54K | |||
| Amortisation of build costs 2021 | €107K | €107K | €107K | ||
| Amortisation of build costs 2022 | €386K | €386K | €386K | €386K | |
| Amortisation of build costs 2023 | €75K | €75K | €75K | €75K |
The 2021 Capex figures differ from the prior year table due to a Board agreed Capex amount moving to 2022, therefore reducing the amortisation charge. This, together with an additional Board agreed Capex expenditure in 2022, has resulted in higher amortised charges than previously stated for 2022.
2022 Fee Model Variables:
The DSB currently provides access to OTC ISIN data to more than 500 organisations, across 33 jurisdictions, of which 75% consume the data free of charge. Fee paying user numbers have remained broadly stable since December 2020, with 129 fee paying users as of 1 October 2021.
2022 Estimated Total DSB Cost
| Fee Variable | Value as at 5 Oct 2021 | Values as at 31 Dec 2021 | Values as at 31 Mar 2022 | Values as at 30 Jun 2022 | Expected values as at 5 Oct 22 * |
| Estimated Total DSB Cost | €9.46 | €9.46 | €9.46 | €9.46 | tbc |
| Number of Infrequent Users | 40 | 41 | 41 | 45 | 40 |
| Number of Standard Users | 11 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 |
| Number of Search Only API Users | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Number of Power Users | 78 | 79 | 79 | 79 | 73 |
* For 2023 Fee Calculation
Annual user fees recover the DSB overhead costs which include a 20% margin for financial sustainability. The DSB 2022 Estimated Total DSB Cost reflects the normal and expected yearly adjustments, such as inflation, in addition to service evolution activity resulting from the 2021 industry annual consultation process, such as review of DSB cloud infrastructure development and analysis on the implementation of a Security Operations Centre.
In accordance with the DSB Charges Policy, Excess Fee Income resulting from additional contracts as well as operating cost efficiencies, go to defraying the Estimated Total DSB Cost for the contract year following the audited statutory accounts.
The DSB’s continued focus on cost-efficiency has resulted in operating expenditure of €693K below the 2020 budget. This saving, together with an additional €424K of revenue above the 2020 revenue expectations, due to intra-year new user agreements, has resulted in an Excess Fee Income reduction of €1,117K against the 2022 Estimated Total DSB Cost. Additionally, there is also a decrease in amortisation and financing costs reflecting the initial build costs having been fully depreciated and start-up loans and loan interest fully repaid.
The tables below show the breakdown of the 2022 Estimated Total DSB Cost upon which the 2022 annual user fees were calculated and includes the 20% margin for financial sustainability:
| Category (Recurring) | Description | Amount |
| Technology & Operations | Operation of the DSB platform including technical and asset class support | €7,694K |
| Management | Senior management team including MD, MSP management team and CFO | €872K |
| Administration | Administrative costs and overheads such as office space, travel and expenses and administrative support functions | €994K |
| External consultants | External oversight, legal, professional & stakeholder outreach | €510K |
| Previous Year Operating Expenditure Adjustment | Excess Fee Income reduction based on the DSB Statutory Accounts 2020 | -€1,117K |
| Total | €8,953K |
| Category (Time-Limited) | Description | Amount |
| Build Costs / Capex | Amortization of build costs 2016-2019 | €511K |
| Total | €511K |
Build Costs / Capex Amortisation Analysis
DSB Build Costs / Capital Expenditure (Capex) are amortized over 4 years, starting from the year after the service/functionality goes live, as approved via industry consultation. On this basis, Build Costs are funded by the DSB’s financial sustainability margin with 25% of the cost incorporated into the cost basis for the four years following build of the service/functionality. Build Costs are based on the known evolution of the service which is driven by industry consultation. Therefore, Build Costs / Capex for 2023 onwards will be provided when details are known. The below table provides an overview of the consolidated amortisation for the period 2018-2021:
| Amortisation Analysis | Estimate 2022 | Forecast 2023 | Forecast 2024 | Forecast 2025 | Forecast 2026 |
| Amortisation of Build Costs/CapEx | €511K | €679K | €482K | €429K | €257K |
| Amortisation of build costs 2018 | €89K | ||||
| Amortisation of build costs 2019 | €196K | €196K | |||
| Amortisation of build costs 2020 | €54K | €54K | €54K | ||
| Amortisation of build costs 2021 | €172K | €172K | €172K | €172K | |
| Amortisation of build costs 2022 | €257K | €257K | €257K | €257K |
2021 Fee Model Variables:
The DSB currently provides access to OTC ISIN data to more than 500 organisations, across 33 jurisdictions, of which 75% consume the data free of charge. Following user feedback, the fee model determination period was brought forward from December to October to better align with users’ budgetary processes.
Fee paying user numbers have remained broadly stable since December 2019, with 124 fee paying users as of 5 October 2020.
| Fee Variable | Value as at 5 Oct 2020 | Values as at 31 Dec 2020 | Values as at 31 Mar 2021 | Values as at 30 Jun 2021 |
| Estimated Total DSB Cost | €10.49m | €10.49m | €10.49m | €10.49m |
| Number of Infrequent Users | 38 | 39 | 42 | 44 |
| Number of Standard Users | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 |
| Number of Power Users | 75 | 77 | 77 | 79 |
2021 Estimated Total DSB Cost
Annual user fees recover the DSB overhead costs which include a 20% margin for financial sustainability. The DSB 2021 Estimated Total DSB Cost reflects the normal and expected yearly adjustments, such as inflation, in addition to service evolution activity resulting from the 2020 industry annual consultation process. This includes functionality to support new user types for read only API and bespoke data downloads. Additional infrastructure costs are also included to support the UK ToTV service following Brexit.
In accordance with the DSB Charges Policy, Excess Fee Income resulting from additional contracts as well as operating cost efficiencies, go to defraying the Estimated Total DSB Cost for the contract year following the audited statutory accounts.
The DSB’s continued focus on cost-efficiency has resulted in operating expenditure of €168K below the 2019 budget. This saving, together with an additional €254K of revenue above the 2019 revenue expectations, due to intra-year new user agreements, has resulted in an Excess Fee Income reduction of €422K
The tables below show the breakdown of the 2021 Estimated Total DSB Cost upon which the 2021 annual user fees were calculated and include the 20% margin for financial sustainability:
| Category (Recurring) | Description | Amount |
| Technology & Operations | Operation of the DSB platform including technical and asset class support | €7,001K |
| Management | Senior management team including MD, MSP management team and CFO | €840K |
| Administration | Administrative costs and overheads such as office space, travel and expenses and administrative support functions | €950K |
| External consultants | External oversight, legal, professional & stakeholder outreach | €510K |
| Previous Year Operating Expenditure Adjustment | Excess Fee Income reduction based on the DSB Statutory Accounts 2019 | -€422K |
| Total | €8,879K |
| Category (Time-Limited) | Description | Amount |
| Build Costs / Capex | Amortization of build costs 2016-2019 | €1,553K |
| Financing cost | Start-up loan interest costs repaid over 4 years | €60K |
| Total | €1,613K |
2020 Fee Model Variables:
The DSB currently provides access to OTC ISIN data for more than 470 organisations, across 33 jurisdictions, of which 70% consume the data free of charge. Fee paying user numbers have remained broadly stable since December 2018, with 122 fee paying users in December 2019.
Moving into its third year of operations, the DSB 2020 Total DSB Cost Forecast reflects the normal and expected yearly adjustments such as inflation, as well as uplift related to industry approved services from 2019 such as a second UAT environment which includes the related ongoing maintenance and operational costs, additional capital expenditure amortization costs which remain in line with forecasts, support for stakeholder education activities to continue the commitment to data alignment and workflow efficiency, as well as additional research and analysis requested by industry during the annual consultation process.
| Fee Variable | 2020 Value as at 2 Dec 2019 | Values as at 31st Mar 2020 | Values as at 30th Jun 2020 |
| Total DSB Cost Forecast | €10.16m | €10.16m | €10.16m |
| Number of Infrequent Users | 37 | 41 | 41 |
| Number of Standard Users | 12 | 12 | 12 |
| Number of Power Users | 73 | 74 | 75 |
2020 Estimated Total DSB Cost
Annual user fees recover the DSB overhead costs. The tables below show the breakdown of the 2020 Total DSB Cost Forecast upon which the 2020 annual user fees were calculated.
Excess revenues resulting from additional contracts and operating cost efficiencies go to defraying the Total DSB Cost Forecast for the next contract year. Costs include a 20% margin for financial sustainability:
| Category (Recurring) | Description | Amount |
| Technology & Operations | Operation of the DSB platform including technical and asset class support | €7,109K |
| Management | Senior management team including MD, MSP management team and CFO | €975K |
| Administration | Administrative costs and overheads such as office space, travel and expenses and administrative support functions | €894K |
| External consultants | External oversight, legal, professional & stakeholder outreach | €555K |
| Previous Year Operating Expenditure Adjustment | Excess Fee Income reduction based on the DSB Statutory Accounts 2018 | -€1,108K |
| Total | €8,425K |
| Category (Time-Limited) | Description | Amount |
| Build Costs / Capex | Amortization of build costs 2016-2019 | €1,498K |
| Financing cost | Start-up loan interest costs repaid over 4 years | €240K |
| Total | €1,738K |
2019 Fee Model Variables:
| Fee Variable | 2019 Value as at 3 Dec 2018 | Values as at 31st Mar 2019 | Values as at 30th Jun 2019 | Values as at 30th Sep 2019 |
| Total DSB Cost Forecast | €9.14m | €9.14m | €9.14m | €9.14m |
| Number of Infrequent Users | 29 | 32 | 34 | 37 |
| Number of Standard Users | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 |
| Number of Power Users | 73 | 74 | 75 | 75 |
2018 Fee Model Variables:
| Fee Variable | 2018 Value as at 5 Jan 2018 |
| Estimated Total DSB Cost | €9.2m |
| Number of Infrequent Users | 15 |
| Number of Standard Users | 10 |
| Number of Power Users | 78 |
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