On 31 December 2019, the Financial Markets Law Committee (FMLC) published its response to the European Commission’s consultation on the review of the Benchmark Regulation (BMR).

The FMLC welcomes the Commission’s review of the BMR, which was published in October 2019, noting that the BMR has had a significant impact on the financial markets. For further information on the review, see our previous blog.

The response highlights the key areas which have been the cause of legal uncertainty, including some areas that do not fall within the scope of the questions in the consultation paper. These include uncertainties arising from the interplay of Brexit and the transition from LIBOR, which may have been unforeseen during the period that the BMR was being drafted but now are a major cause for concern.