On 29 April 2020 we blogged that in the context of COVID-19 the European Commission published a legislative proposal for targeted amendments to the Capital Requirements Regulation (CRR). A legislative process is currently underway, with both the Council (Member States) and the European Parliament conducting their respective reviews. On 13 May 2020, a meeting of … Continue Reading
On 11 May 2020, the European Commission hosted a meeting of the Expert Group of European Securities Committee (EGESC), which is composed of Member States experts. One of the agenda items was initial considerations and exchange of views whether any urgent amendments to the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II) are required in the … Continue Reading
On Wednesday, 8 April 2020, the European Commission published three draft delegated regulations setting out sustainability criteria for benchmarks provided in accordance with the Regulation (EU) 2016/1011 on indices used as benchmarks in financial instruments and financial contracts or to measure the performance of investment funds (BMR). These measures follow amendments to the BMR introduced … Continue Reading
On 1 April 2020, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) released two publications concerning the commodity derivatives regime under MiFID II. This includes ESMA’s final review report on position limits and position management in commodity derivatives, and technical advice on weekly position reports published by trading venues on open positions per category of stakeholders. … Continue Reading
On 17 February 2020, the European Commission (Commission) launched its long-awaited public consultation on the review of MiFID II and MiFIR. The consultation paper is divided into two main sections: Section 1 covering general questions on the overall functioning of the MiFID II and MiFIR regulatory framework (Qs 1 – 6.1) and Section 2 covering … Continue Reading
On 29 January 2020, the European Commission published its 2020 Work Programme . In the introductory note, the Commission acknowledges “unprecedented challenges” that lay ahead for this year and beyond, including negotiation of a new partnership agreement with the UK – “a country that will remain a partner, ally and friend outside our Union”. As … Continue Reading
On 22 January 2020, Norton Rose Fulbright’s corporate financial services and government relations practices, in cooperation with the City of London Corporation, organised a panel debate on “The finalisation of the Basel III reforms in a post-Brexit environment: single or dual-track approach?”. Hosted in Norton Rose Fulbright’s Brussels office, the event gathered over 75 participants, … Continue Reading
For all financial services practitioners, 2020 will be a year of dynamic developments. The first full working year of the 2019-2024 College of Commissioners, under the leadership of Ursula von der Leyen, is expected to set the scene for the legislative, regulatory and policy agenda for the duration of its mandate. From the MiFID II … Continue Reading
On 9 January 2020, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published its strategic orientation 2020-22. The strategic orientation sets out ESMA’s longer-term focus and objectives and is translated into concrete actions through the annual programming document and work programme. ESMA developed its first strategic orientation (for the period 2016-2020) in 2015 and regularly assessed … Continue Reading
On 19 December 2019, the Council of the EU (Council) published a note from the General Secretariat of the Council to the Delegations attaching the following addenda: a three-column table setting out the negotiating positions of the European Commission (Commission), the Council and the European Parliament (Parliament) in respect of the proposed amendments to the … Continue Reading
On 18 December 2019, there was published in the Official Journal of the EU (OJ), European Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2019/2166 relating to the equivalence of third country jurisdictions’ supervisory and regulatory arrangements in accordance with the Capital Requirements Regulation (CRR). Implementing Decision (EU) 2019/2166 amends Implementing Decision 2014/908/EU to add Serbia and South Korea … Continue Reading
On 18 December 2019, there was published in the Official Journal of the EU (OJ): Regulation (EU) 2019/2160 amending Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 as regards exposures in the form of covered bonds; and Directive (EU) 2019/2162 amending Directives 2009/65/EC and 2014/59/EU on the issue of covered bonds and covered bond public supervision. The legislation comes … Continue Reading
On 5 December 2019, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published a consultation paper setting out proposals for internal controls for credit rating agencies (CRAs). The draft guidelines set out the criteria that CRAs should have in place to meet the requirements of the CRA Regulation with a particular focus on their internal controls … Continue Reading
On 4 December 2019, the Council of the EU published a press release announcing that the Council of the European Union (the Council) has adopted its position on the proposed regulation on recovery and resolution of central counterparties (CCPs) (the Regulation). The Council has also published the text of the negotiating mandate. While the press … Continue Reading
On 4 December 2019, the European Banking Authority (EBA) published the second part of its advice on the implementation of the final Basel III standard in the European Union, complementing its report published on 05 August 2019. The most recent EBA publication focuses on an assessment of the impact of the revisions to the credit … Continue Reading
On 20 November 2019, the Council of the EU published the following three notes from the General Secretariat of the Council to the Permanent Representatives : an information note on the proposed Omnibus Regulation relating to the powers, governance and funding of the European Supervisory Authorities; an information note on the proposed Omnibus Directive amending … Continue Reading
On 18 November 2019, the European Commission published a press release announcing the composition of a high-level forum on the Capital Markets Union (CMU). The forum is made up of a group of 28 experts from the civil society, the business and finance community and other non-public sector institutions who will provide insight and support … Continue Reading
On Tuesday, 12 November 2019, the European Commission hosted a conference titled Implementing Basel III: Challenges and impact. The event was held in the context of the ongoing Commission consultation on Basel III implementation (see our earlier post here). The opening remarks were delivered by Valdis Dombrovskis, the Commission’s Vice-President for the Euro and Social … Continue Reading
On Wednesday 6 November 2019 the EU legislators held their second trilogue negotiation round on the proposal for a Regulation on the establishment of a framework to facilitate sustainable investment (hereinafter: the ‘Taxonomy proposal’). The proposed regulation will establish the conditions and the framework to create a unified classification system on what economy activities can … Continue Reading
On 8 November 2019, the Council of the EU announced that it had adopted a set of legislative reforms which are part of the progress towards forming the Capital Markets Union, including: the creation of a new category of benchmarks contributing to sustainable finance; transparency obligations for sustainable investments; a new prudential framework for investment … Continue Reading
On Tuesday, 05 November 2019, ESMA launched public consultation on position limits and position management controls in commodity derivatives. The consultation paper is divided into two parts and covers – (1) MiFID II review report on the application of position limits and position management controls and (2) technical advice on position reporting thresholds. Following on … Continue Reading
On 31 October 2019, the Council of the EU published a note from the General Secretariat of the Council relating to progress on financial services legislative files. The note sets out, among other things, the dates on which the Council intends to adopt the following legislation governing: investment firms on 8 November 2019; sustainable finance … Continue Reading
On 23 October 2019, the Council of the EU published the texts it adopted at first reading for the: the Regulation on the prudential requirements of investment firms and amending the Capital Requirements Regulation, the Markets in Financial Instruments Regulation and the European Banking Authority Regulation (the Investment Firms Regulation (IFR)); and the Directive on … Continue Reading
On 18 October 2019, the Council of the EU (Council) published two notes from the General Secretariat of the Council to the Permanent Representatives Committee (COREPER): an information note on the proposed Regulation on the prudential requirements of investment firms and amending the Capital Requirements Regulation, the Markets in Financial Instruments Regulation and the European … Continue Reading
