On 20 March 2020, the FCA updated its webpage on the Securities Financing Transactions Regulation (SFTR) to confirm its approach to supervisory reporting in the light of COVID-19.

The FCA refers to the recent statement by the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) regarding the postponement of the reporting obligations related to securities financing transactions (SFTs) under both the SFTR and the Markets in Financial Instruments Regulation (MiFIR).

The FCA is supportive of ESMA’s statement. The FCA will not prioritise supervision of these reporting requirements until at least 13 July 2020. It will not require firms to back report any SFTs that are concluded between 13 April 2020 and 13 July 2020. However, SFTs that meet the criteria specified in Article 4(1)(a)(i) and (ii) (backloading) should be reported using 13 July 2020 as the application date.