The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published a letter that it has written to the European Commission raising concerns over the potential establishment of networks of systematic internalisers (SIs) by investment firms to circumvent certain MiFID II obligations, in particular the requirements for investment firms operating internal matching systems and executing client orders on a multilateral basis to be authorised as trading venues, and the trading obligation for shares. ESMA asks the Commission to look into this matter to determine whether it should use any of its regulatory tools. ESMA will also monitor developments and may clarify the scope of SI’s permitted activities as well as the characteristics of multilateral systems via Q&As.

View ESMA writes to European Commission on MiFID II systematic internalisers operating broker crossing networks, 14 February 2017