Effective monopoly as the sole clearinghouse serving the principal securities markets in the U.S. Rigorous risk management controls and strong financial safeguards protect the clearinghouse from member default Mutuality of risk, which provides members strong financial and business incentives to support the clearinghouse Implied support from the broader securities markets community, owing to the clearinghouse's importance to the capital markets infrastructure High degree of operating leverage Standard&Poor's Ratings Services' ratings on National Securities Clearing Corp. (NSCC; AAA/Stable/A-1+) incorporate its critical role in the behind-the-scenes operations of the U.S. securities markets, as well as its strong credit controls and financial safeguards that protect it from member default. Given NSCC's importance to the fabric of the U.S. securities markets, both
