The Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) is the central depository and clearing house for all shares traded on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX). A CSCS account holds your shares electronically, replacing the old paper share certificates.
Definition
A CSCS (Central Securities Clearing System) account is an electronic account that holds your Nigerian shares as a dematerialised record, assigned to you under your CHN number.
Before CSCS, Nigerian investors held physical paper share certificates. This created risk — certificates could be lost, forged, or stolen. CSCS was established in 1997 to dematerialise Nigerian securities, meaning all holdings are stored as electronic records instead of paper certificates.
A CSCS account is typically opened by your stockbroker on your behalf when you begin investing. It is linked to your Central Holder Number (CHN). When you buy shares through a regulated broker — as Shares Saver does — your CSCS account is credited with those shares.
Your CSCS account contains the electronic records of all NGX-listed shares you own. It shows the company name, number of shares, and transaction history. It is the official record of your shareholding.
When you buy shares through Shares Saver, the shares are purchased and registered in your name through your CSCS account. This is direct ownership — not a pooled balance or nominee structure. Your name appears in the company's shareholder register.
No. When you invest through Shares Saver and a regulated broker executes your purchase, the broker handles the CSCS account setup. You do not need to visit CSCS directly.
Yes. You can view your shareholding in the Shares Saver app. CSCS also provides an investor portal where registered shareholders can check their holdings.
Yes. Your Shares Saver account is your app profile. Your CSCS account is the official electronic record at the depository level. They are linked — shares purchased through Shares Saver are reflected in both.
Shares Saver lets you buy and own NGX-listed shares directly in your own name through regulated broker execution.
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