December 20, 2013
i think the DTCC needs to address whether depositor or transferrer can withdraw the stock certificates before/during action by the clearinghouse.
if the certificates may be counterfeit, stolen or otherwise illegally acquired, the process that the DTCC is proposing should continue until conclusion. once delayed, a determination should be required. the depositor should not be able to take action to avoid such a determination.
if the DTCC notices a pattern by depositors, the DTCC should be required to notify law enforcement.
i would urge the DTCC to employ at least an attorney and an auditor to aid in the proceedings depending on the allegations made by the depositor. in other words, the allegations of the depositor must be investigated and documented. allegations that cannot be substantiated should not result in the release of the securities. there may be instances where certificates that are sequestered might have an indeterminated status, if the requestor fails to respond, at any point. in this case, the DTCC might have to maintain permanent sequester so that suspected securities would not find their way back to any market. it is possible that the DTCC might have to mark the certificates so that they cannot be used/transferred or given to the transfer agent.
i would urge the DTCC to notify regulators of proceedings and not keep them confidential until a determination is made. this notification should include depositor, security symbol, amount of securities, date sequestered, next date and name of proceeding, status of proceeding/determination, DTCC contact for this matter.