DTC Proposes Portal for Corporate Action Notices

The Depository Trust Company ("DTC") proposed to require agents to submit corporate action notices through a new electronic portal or automated feeds instead of email. The SEC published the filing for comment under Exchange Act Section 19(b) and Rule 19b-4.

The AnnounceDirect portal would cover redemption, reorganization, and distribution notices. DTC said email can require manual review, which can cause delays and create a risk of errors.

DTC would phase in notice types: certain redemptions in November 2026, other redemptions in 2027, reorganizations in 2028, and distributions in 2029. It would onboard firms by volume, starting with about 20 firms that handle about 90 percent of events. Once an agent is registered and notified, it could not use email for those notices and would resolve errors in an exceptions queue.

A more uniform standard would replace product- and event-specific redemption windows. Full redemptions and events without lottery processing would have to be in good order at least one business day before the redemption date. Partial redemptions and lottery events would need more lead time: they would have to be in good order at least one business day before the publication date, which would be at least three business days before redemption.

DTC said the proposal is consistent with Exchange Act Section 17A and Rule 17Ad-22. It expects no added technology builds or fees for agents and received no written comments.

Comments are due October 20, 2026. The SEC must approve, disapprove, or start disapproval proceedings within 45 days of Federal Register publication, or up to 90 days if extended.