CUSIP Number

What Is a CUSIP Number?

A CUSIP number is a nine-character code, made up of letters and digits, that identifies a single financial security. The name stands for the Committee on Uniform Securities Identification Procedures, the group that developed the system. The codes are maintained by CUSIP Global Services, which operates under the American Bankers Association. CUSIP numbers are used for securities issued in the United States and Canada, and for some issues from other countries.

How a CUSIP Number Is Structured

The nine characters fall into three parts. The first six identify the issuer, which is the company, government, or other entity that issued the security. The next two identify the specific issue, such as a particular class of stock or a bond with a particular maturity. The final character is a check digit, calculated from the other eight characters with a fixed formula, which helps catch errors when a code is typed or transmitted.

Because the issuer portion is shared, a company that has several bonds outstanding may have one six-character issuer code, with a different issue code for each bond.

Why It Matters to Investors

Brokers, custodian banks, and data providers use CUSIPs to tell securities apart, even when two securities have similar names. A ticker symbol can change or be reused, but a CUSIP stays attached to the security it identifies. This makes it useful for trade settlement, record-keeping, and reporting. Investors often see CUSIPs on trade confirmations, account statements, and fund holdings reports.

CUSIPs have limits. They cover mainly North American securities, so securities from other regions are usually identified with a different system, the International Securities Identification Number (ISIN). Access to the full CUSIP database is licensed, so the data is not freely available in complete form.