On 29 January 2025, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) issued a speech by Klaus Löber, Chair of the ESMA CCP Supervisory Committee, entitled Shaping the future of EU capital markets.

In his speech Mr Löber touches on ESMA’s work on implementing the European Market Infrastructure Regulation 3.

Key points include:

  • ESMA was mandated to develop no less than 28 Regulatory and Implementing Technical Standards as well as Guidelines, most of which will have to be finalised by this December.
  • Following its consultation last November on active account requirement conditions, ESMA is on track to deliver draft Regulatory Technical Standards to the European Commission well before June 2025.
  • The Commission’s intention to further extend the equivalence of the UK framework for a limited period of 3 years is welcome as it will give sufficient time for the active account requirement to take effect as well as for ESMA and the Commission to assess its impact on the exposure of EU counterparties to Tier 2 central counterparties (CCPs).
  • ESMA will also work on strengthening the resilience of EU CCPs and the wider clearing ecosystem, particularly in light of the lessons learnt from the 2022 energy crisis.
  • ESMA is mandated to improve the transparency of margin requirements collected by CCPs and clearing members and to consider the potential procyclical effects of haircuts on collateral on the broader ecosystem, as well as to clarify the minimum participation requirements for clearing members, in particular non-financial counterparties.