How to choose a Local Operating Unit

LOU map of the world

The process of obtaining an LEI number has never been more complicated, but also has never been made more simple. With a lot of options, you may be wondering which LOU you should register your number with.

CEO of a prominent LEI authority, has said “we urge impacted market participants to get an LEI as soon as possible”. There is no guarantee that all entities affected will have procured an LEI number by January, which means some firms will be unable to execute trades.

LEI Worldwide provide a service by which we collate the required information on behalf of our clients, and act as their LEI partner. Working in collaboration with the LEI number issuers (LOU’s), and effectively streamlining the entire process.

Having your LEI number registered on the global database means your organisation is searchable and certain pertaining to your legal entity is visible to the public domain.

But what exactly can they see? For one, the Local Operating Unit from which you have obtained your number is visible. This means if you are a company based in Germany but have received an LEI from the London stock exchange, it will be visible.

“A legal entity is not limited to using an LEI issuer in its own country; instead it can use registration services of any LOU that is accredited and qualified to validate LEI regitrations”

This is in the interest of fair play, as there are only a small number of issuers in the world e.g South America has only one – in Argentina.

Worldwide competition means LOU’s must price competitively and there are no monopolies within any given jurisdictions.
But that prompts the question, is it better to get an LEI from a particular country? If so, which country is the best one?
To answer that question, we must first ask what benefits there are to the LEI system for the organisations n question. Firstly, increased transparency will provide more accurate identification. Risk management and operational efficiency will be increased by more simplified regulatory reporting, and the overall record keeping of trading  will become more visible, to you, and the governing bodies.

One LEI does not provide more benefits than another, but reputation matters. If your organisation is trading under the issuance of an LOU that has been internationally red flagged, that stigma may be associated with you.
LEI Worldwide provide the option to receive an LEI number from all 30 LOU’s, but here are a few pointers to keep in mind when selecting yours, regardless of where in the world you may be.
Your first filter should be geographical location.

Yes, it is probably most common to register with your jurisdictional LOU, for example The London Stock exchange if you are based in the EU. By registering via LEI Worldwide, you can register your LEI with any of the LOU’s in the world and then port your LEI at any time. The benefit of this is that you may conduct business or dealings in another country – or continent, and having your LEI from that region helps you to leverage yourself as an entity within that region.
Other filter to consider before you choose an LOU, may be the reputation of the LOU in question.

Ask yourself, is this a stock exchange, or well known organisation that has been red flagged? Do you already have a working relationship with them? And are they the organisation you want to be associated with? Finally, each LOU may have their own pricing structure, and a small bit of research may be required to source the least expensive, or reasonably priced.

To get your LEI number and choose an LOU click here.