On 16 December 2020 the Council of EU Ministers (the Council) agreed package of amendments to European financial services legislation – Capital Markets Recovery Package – including targeted amendments to MiFID II (so called MiFID “quick fix”). The key changes to the MiFID II regime include: Investor protection and research: agreed amendments include simplification of … Continue Reading
On 3 and 4 December 2020, the European Parliament (Parliament), the Council and the European Commission (Commission) held the first round of the trilogue negotiations on the July 2020 Capital Markets Recovery Package proposal for targeted amendments to MiFID II (the so called MiFID “quick fix” proposal, overview of which is included in our blog … Continue Reading
On 26 October 2020, the European Commission (the Commission) launched a public consultation[1] on sustainable corporate governance (the Consultation), soliciting responses from stakeholders on a possible EU sustainable corporate governance initiative with the aim of ensuring “that environmental and social interests are embedded in business strategies”. The Consultation will, according to the Commission, complement the … Continue Reading
On 27 October 2020, the European Securities and Markets Agency (ESMA) issued a public statement on the impact of Brexit on the continued application of MiFID II and MiFIR. The statement provided clarifications in respect of three aspects of MiFID II, namely: The ESMA opinions on third-country trading venues for the purpose of post trade … Continue Reading
On 19 October 2020 the European Commission published its Work Programme for 2021. The Work Programme, titled ‘A Union of vitality in a world of fragility’, is the second one published by the Von der Leyen Commission. The Work Programme provides an overview of the legislative priorities of the Commission for the upcoming year, as … Continue Reading
The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) has published for consultation a draft Opinion on the supervision of the use of climate-change risk scenarios in the ORSA. The ORSA is an internal risk management assessment of all the various risks that might impact an insurer’s balance sheet and is a requirement under Solvency II. … Continue Reading
On 24 September 2020, the European Commission published its long-awaited Capital Markets Union (CMU) Action Plan. The CMU Action Plan serves as a list of policies the Commission would like to introduce over the upcoming years, together with a timeline for the adoption of concrete legislative proposals. The main objective of the CMU is to … Continue Reading
The discussions on the European Commission proposal on the so-called “MiFID Quick Fix”, which also includes proposed amendments to the Prospectus Regulation and the Securitisation Regulation and corresponding changes to the Capital Requirements Regulation (CRR) are progressing. Following an initial Council Working Group meeting on 3 September, EU Member States’ representatives reconvened on 17 September … Continue Reading
On 24 September 2020, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) launched a public consultation on the functioning of the MiFIR obligation to report transactions and reference data. The following day, on 25 September 2020, ESMA launched another public consultation from the MiFID II / MiFIR review series, this time focussing on the functioning of … Continue Reading
The outline of the anticipated EU legislative framework for markets in crypto-assets is becoming clearer and the European Commission is preparing to publish a legislative proposal by the end of September. The legislative initiative on markets with crypto-assets fall within the broader Commission policy initiative on digital finance, which will also include a legislative proposal … Continue Reading
On 3 September 2020, representatives of Member States met to discuss the Capital Markets Recovery Package. The package consists of amendments to the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II), the so called MiFID “quick fix”, amendments to the Prospectus Regulation, amendments to the Securitisation Regulation and the corresponding changes to the Capital Requirements Regulation … Continue Reading
On 27 August, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published a statement announcing that it intends to update the 2019 Guidelines on stress test scenarios under the Money Market Funds Regulation (MMFR) to include a modification of the risk parameters to reflect recent market developments related to the COVID-19 crisis. ESMA has assessed whether … Continue Reading
Delegated Regulation (EU) 2018/1229 supplementing the Central Securities Depositories Regulation (909/2014) (CSDR) with regard to regulatory technical standards (RTS) on settlement discipline, was due to come into force on 13 September. However, on 24 August 2020, Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/1212 was published in the OJ, which amends Delegated Regulation 2018/1229 to postpone its entry … Continue Reading
On 19 August 2020 the European Banking Authority (EBA) published its response to the European Commission’s consultation on its action plan for a comprehensive EU policy on preventing money laundering and terrorist financing. The European Commission’s action plan includes 6 “pillars” to strengthen the EU’s anti-money laundering (AML) and counter terrorist financing (CTF) framework, and … Continue Reading
On 19 August, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published a letter (ESMA34-32-550) dated 18 August that it had sent to the European Commission, outlining areas it should consider during the forthcoming review of the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD). ESMA’s letter includes recommendations for changes in 19 areas that ESMA and competent … Continue Reading
On 18 August, the FCA announced temporary relief for issuers who choose to use the amended International Reporting Standard (IFRS) 16 (COVID-19-related rent concessions – Amendment to IFRS 16) during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and its aftermath. The amendment to IFRS 16 is effective for reporting periods beginning on or after 1 June 2020 and … Continue Reading
It is understood that the European Commission is close to adopting its legislative proposal on Digital Operational Resilience for the Financial Sector. The legislative proposal, which follows a public consultation held by the Commission in Q1 2020, would establish a unified framework for the coherent application of all components of risk management for the information … Continue Reading
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
