On 3 October 2019, the European and Securities Markets Authority (ESMA) published a consultation paper on the provisions of the Market Abuse Regulation (MAR).
Article 38 of MAR requires the European Commission (Commission) to present a report to the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union to assess various provisions of MAR. In light of this, the Commission formally requested technical advice from ESMA on the report in March 2019 (see previous blog here).
The consultation published covers the topics covered by Article 38 of MAR and also a set of connected topics arising from the Commission’s mandate on the scope of MAR. The consultation paper addresses a wide range of issues, including:
- the possible inclusion of spot FX contracts within the scope of MAR;
- the definition and delayed disclosure of inside information in different cases;
- the appropriateness of the trading prohibition and insider lists for persons discharging managerial responsibilities;
- a possible cross-market order book surveillance framework;
- cum/ex and multiple withholding tax reclaim schemes; and
- cross-border enforcement of sanctions.
The deadline for comments to the consultation is 29 November 2019. An open hearing on this consultation paper will take place on 5 November 2019. ESMA intends to submit a final report to the Commission by spring 2020.
