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CUSIP Number
Article by Reviewed by
Ashish Kumar Srivastav Dheeraj Vaidya, CFA, FRM
What Is A CUSIP Number?
The CUSIP number is a unique identification code assigned to most financial
instruments, including stocks of all registered US and Canadian companies, commercial
paper, and US government and municipal bonds. It is owned and managed by
American Bankers Association and Standard and Poor’s respectively.
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It has nine characters, a combination of numbers and letters, and helps identify the issuer
of financial instruments. It has a unique design that is compatible with all types of online
record maintenance systems and is used for various purposes like security, clearance, and
settlement.
Table of contents
What Is A CUSIP Number?
CUSIP Number Explained
Format
Example
Uses
How To Find It?
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CUSIP Number Explained
The CUSIP number for stock and bond is a unique identification code for all financial
securities registered with the US and Canadian entities. Under the CUSIP system,
securities are provided a unique identification code that enables clear tracking of the
issue and security‐related details, facilitating ease of execution of trades, settlements,
and payouts for both the investor and the issuer.
The full form of CUSIP is Committee on Uniform Securities Identification Procedures.
The system was born out of a need to develop a standard method of identifying FREE EXCEL RESOURCES
securities to improve operating efficiencies across the industry. The American Bankers Learn MS Excel right from scratch. Master excel formulas, graphs,
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Association ﴾ABA﴿ was tasked to find a suitable system for the same in 1964 by the New
York Clearing House Association. As a result, the Committee on Uniform Security
Identification Procedures was created, and the CUSIP system was instituted. The CUSIP.
The Service Bureau was formed to administer the system in 1968.
CUSIP Global Services ﴾CGS﴿, the overarching entity for all offerings, is managed on
behalf of the ABA by S&P Global Market Intelligence. CGS has a Board of Trustees
representing various leading financial institutions.
CGS is the numbering systems or agency for
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The United States and Canada.
The Cayman Islands, British Virgin Islands, and Bermuda.
35 Other markets throughout the Caribbean and Central/South America.
Format
These numbers capture an issue’s significant differentiating characteristics based on a 9‐
character identifier with a common structure. Given is the format of both CUSIP and
CINS numbers.
CUSIP Format
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The CINS identification system uses a nine‐character structure similar to the CUSIP but
contains a letter in the first position to denote the issuer’s country/geographic region.
CINS Format
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Some examples of CUSIP numbers are given below which provides a CUSIP number
list.
CUSIP of Common Stock CUSIP of a Bond Issue
Microsoft 594918104 594918AD6
Procter & Gamble 742718109 742718EV7
Johnson & Johnson 478160104 478160AF1
The above CUSIP number list is useful in identifying such financial instruments.
Uses
It is necessary to check CUSIP number because this identification system provides
descriptive information about various securities, making it easier to track securities
across all processing and analysis phases. The system covers a wide range of global
financial instruments and currently covers over 14 million financial instruments.
CINS is used to codify and identify foreign securities, similar to the CUSIP number for
stock and bonds.
The criteria for assigning these to equity or debt instruments of issuers are as follows:
System Equity Debt
Public or Private debt offering in US
Public ﴾unrestricted﴿ offering by US or Canadian Issuer
by any issuer
CUSIP Private ﴾restricted﴿ offering in US by any issuer
– SEC registered; as per Rule 144A
– In accordance with Rule 144A or Regulation D
or Regulation D
Equity offerings Exclusively outside the US and Canada
– Regulation S stock offering by US company on UK AIM Debt offered exclusively outside the
Exchange or in Germany US and Canada
CINS
Public Offering in US by non‐US or Canadian issuer – Eurobonds
﴾except ADR/GDR﴿ – Regulation S ﴾any issuer﴿
Across Cayman Islands, Bermuda and British Virgin Islands
How To Find It?
In case the investors want to know how to get a CUSIP number, they should look at
the security documents’ faces, as shown in the specimen samples below.
#1 – Specimen Share Certificate
Source: SEC archives
#2 – Specimen Bond Certificate
Source: oldstocks.com
Therefore, in the case of securities owned, the investors should check CUSIP number
directly from the security documents, offer documents, from securities brokers, on the
issuing companies’ websites, or by contacting the investor relations department of the
issuing entity. In addition, entities usually mention the number of their common stock on
their website.
Brokerage firms and websites that provide securities research also include the CUSIP
number in the profile information of the concerned stock or bond. E.g., CBXmarket.
In the case of common stock, a general Google search with the stock’s trading
symbol is likely to yield results on the CUSIP number.
This unique number of municipal bonds can be found in Electronic Municipal
Market Access ﴾EMMA﴿, managed by the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board.
CGS’s ‘CUSIP Access’ is a fee‐based web service that provides access to the entire
universe of identifiers and a standardized securities description.
These numbers can also be found using other web‐based search tools offered by
various investment houses and brokers such as Fidelity Investments.
Thus, from the above explanation it is clear how to get a CUSIP number.
Benefits
An investor is required to quote the CUSIP number in forms and documents on the
purchase and trade of stocks or bonds.
Additionally, the following benefits also accrue to investors:
Since these numbers are unique and specific to each security, it allows for easy
identification and tracking of stocks, bonds, funds, etc., to ensure accurate execution
and documentation of trades, settlement, and clearance.
Information specific to the trades, yield, performance of a stock, etc., can be
obtained through research using the CUSIP number.
It allows issuers to map individual securities to the investors, making it easier to
track interest and dividend, etc.
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with examples, its format, uses and its benefits. You may also have a look at the
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