Debunking Urban Legends: Hosting Private Securitisations in a Repository

In short, securitisation repositories are well-suited to private securitisations. They provide a secure, confidential, and access-controlled environment, operate to the highest information-security standards, offer competitive cost structures, and are already trusted to host hundreds of private transactions.

European, DataWarehouse (EDW) aims to maintain a neutral position regarding any proposed changes to the transparency regime, particularly those relating to private securitisations. That said, the debate around this topic has given rise to a number of persistent misconceptions. This blog aims to address and debunk some of the most common myths associated with the use of a repository for private transactions.

Nearly 15 years ago, in the aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis, the European Central Bank invited market participants, through the ABS loan-level initiative, to establish a data infrastructure that would improve transparency in the European securitisation market and help restore investor confidence. EDW is the result of that initiative. Established by the market for the market, EDW has been operating as a securitisation repository since 2012. Today, it is not only the repository of the Eurosystem but is also designated by both the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

As part of the ABS loan-level initiative, the ECB’s collateral framework required all eligible public securitisations to report to a securitisation repository. This requirement was expanded with the introduction of the Securitisation Regulation (EU) 2017/2402 in 2019, which broadened the scope of asset classes and significantly increased the amount of data and documentation that issuers must make available to investors and supervisors. However, under Article 7 of the Securitisation Regulation, only issuers of public securitisations are required to report to a repository. Issuers of private securitisations remain exempt.

This exemption has led many private issuers to express reservations about using a repository. Some concerns are valid, but others are best described as urban legends.

Reality: Data and documents are confidential and strictly access-controlled.

While public securitisations must report to a repository, this does not mean the data is publicly available. Access is limited to registered users only, and repositories such as EDW apply strict access controls and KYC procedures to ensure that only the relevant audience can view the data and documentation.

For private securitisations, access controls are even stricter. The issuer, or creator of the private deal on the EDW platform, decides who can access which specific data items or documents. Control remains firmly with the issuer.

Reality: Repositories like EDW are built to meet some of the highest information security and operational resilience standards in the market.

In reality, data security is pivotal for EDW. As a securitisation repository, EDW is subject to stringent operational resilience and IT security standards, including the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA). Its risk management framework complies with DORA requirements, as well as the standards of the ECB collateral framework, ISO 27001, and SOC 2.

From a technical perspective, EDW stores data in Microsoft Azure data centres located in either the EU or the UK. The platform leverages Azure Sentinel and Defender technologies to continuously monitor security activity, with all traffic routed through a firewall to detect anomalies. Additional protections include DDoS mitigation, native firewall tools, key vaults, and infrastructure-level encryption. Combined with ongoing regulatory oversight, this provides a level of assurance that often exceeds the security standards of the financial entities reporting to the repository.

Despite their exemption under Article 7, issuers of private securitisations are still required to prepare ESMA templates (with the exception of Annex 14) in XML format and make the relevant documentation available upon request. This brings us to the third urban legend.

Reality: Repositories are already trusted to host hundreds of private securitisations

As of 31 December 2025, more than 400 private securitisations were stored on the EDW platform, compared with approximately 600 active public securitisations in the EU. Estimates range from 1,000 to 1,500 private securitisations in the EU, this means that around one in three private ABS transactions already uses a repository. While this may not yet be the norm, it is far from uncommon.

Reality: EDW fees are transparent, predictable, and lower than many issuers expect, with the first year free of charge for private transactions.

While transparency does entail costs, particularly the effort required to produce ESMA templates, which can be significant for first-time issuers, the cost of using a repository itself is comparatively low. At EDW, the annual fee for public ABS is €15,500 in the first year and €7,500 in subsequent years. For private securitisations, and in line with EDW’s mandate as a utility to foster transparency, the first year is currently free of charge.

Based on discussions with clients, three main reasons emerge:

1. Security, which, as outlined above, is best in class.
2. Convenience and operational efficiency. Many issuers use EDW as a high-end virtual data room for both public and private ABS, enabling efficient communication with investors, arrangers, rating agencies, and supervisors. Since most EU investors and rating agencies are already registered on the EDW platform, operational hurdles such as website whitelisting are largely eliminated.
3. Cost. For private securitisations, and in line with EDW’s mandate as a utility to foster transparency, the first year is currently free of charge. Even after the first-year discount has expired, the price of uploading to a repository is less than using a virtual data room for similar purposes.  

The use of repositories by private securitisations is more common than many market participants expect. Issuers who choose to use the EDW’s Solution for Private Transactions consistently cite strong data security and access controls, convenience and operational efficiency, and low cost as the key drivers behind their decision.