CHESS and Share Registration
CHESS (Clearing House Electronic Sub-Register System) is the system used by the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) to record shareholdings and manage the settlement of share transactions. When you buy shares through Selfwealth, they are registered under CHESS, meaning you are the full legal and beneficial owner of those shares, not Selfwealth. This is different to platforms that use a custodian model, where the platform holds shares on your behalf.
How are ASX shares registered?
ASX shares held directly by a shareholder can be registered in one of 2 ways:
- Broker-Sponsored (CHESS-Sponsored), when shares are bought through a broker like Selfwealth. You hold a Holder Identification Number (HIN).
- Issuer-Sponsored, when shares are given directly to you by the company. You hold a Securityholder Reference Number (SRN) instead of a HIN.
Broker-Sponsored (CHESS-Sponsored) Holdings
When you buy shares through a broker, they are allocated a Holder Identification Number (HIN). All shares purchased through the broker are held under your HIN. You can hold more than one HIN across different brokers.
If you wish to sell broker-sponsored shares through a different broker, the shares must first be transferred to that broker before the sale can proceed.
Issuer-Sponsored Holdings
Issuer-sponsored shares are managed directly by the company via a share registry, for example Telstra shares managed by Link Market Services. These shares can be traded via Selfwealth once they have been transferred to your Selfwealth HIN.
Please note: Selfwealth cannot sell issuer-sponsored shares directly. They must first be transferred to your Selfwealth HIN (CHESS-Sponsored Holdings). For help with this transfer, please contact our support team.