On 1 September 2020 the European Services and Markets Authority (ESMA) published a call for evidence to gather insights and feedback from market participants relating to the practical implementation of MiFID II and MiFIR provisions for equity and non-equity instruments. ESMA seek responses on a dedicated template on or before 31 October 2020.

Historically, ESMA have already undertaken reviews dating back to September 2018. These primarily relate to the application of the MiFIR transparency regime for equity and non-equity instruments and, as a result, have resulted in the publication of recommendations for potential legislative amendments. Whilst this new review covers a similar topic area, its purpose is much narrower and focussed on the practical challenges being faced through the industry-wide implementation of the provisions.

ESMA hope this call for evidence will enable them to focus on specific practical issues ahead of launching an in-depth consultation. The outputs of this will then enable them to develop robust proposals for legislative reforms to be shared with the European Commission in 2021.