Investment - Roles of Brokers, Dealers, Clearing Houses, Settlement Agents, Custodians and Depositories 
​Brokers 
Act as agents  
Find sellers for clients who want to purchase, and buyers for clients who want to sell  
Serve as professional negotiators  
Ensure clients will settle their trades

Dealers Participate in their clients’ trades  
Allow clients to trade when they want by being ready to buy when their clients want to sell and to sell when their clients want to buy  
Provide liquidity since they are willing to trade on demand  
Are often proprietary traders

Clearing Houses
Arrange for final settlement of trades  
Promote liquidity by convincing investors that their trades will be settled 

Settlement Agents Arrange final exchange of cash for securities

Custodians
 Hold money and securities for safekeeping on behalf of clients   
May offer extra services for clients, such as trade settlement and collection of interest and dividends 

Depositories
​Act not only as custodians but also as monitors to avoid the loss of securities and fraud  
Often are controlled