Recital 26

(26)Any legal person falling within the scope of the definition of a CSD needs to be authorised by the competent national authorities before starting its activities. Taking into account different business models, a CSD should be defined by reference to certain core services, which consist of settlement, implying the operation of a securities settlement system, notary and central securities accounts maintenance services. A CSD should at least operate a securities settlement system and provide one other core service. This combination is essential for CSDs to play their role in securities settlement and in ensuring the integrity of a securities issue. Entities that do not operate securities settlement systems such as registrars, transfer agents, public authorities, bodies in charge of a registry system established under Directive 2003/87/EC, or CCPs that are regulated by Regulation (EU) No 648/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council ¹⁰ do not fall within the scope of the definition of a CSD.