The guidance was issued after ESMA and national regulators observed “high volatility episodes” in EU share prices, some of which took place shortly after pre-close calls with analysts....more
An evolving landscape of reforms in the ESG ratings sector continues to pose challenges to providers of ratings and scores.
International momentum to regulate ESG ratings continues as the European Commission released a...more
6/16/2023
/ Consultation ,
Corporate Governance ,
Data Collection ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) ,
Global Market ,
HM Treasury ,
India ,
IOSCO ,
Japan ,
Ratings ,
Regulatory Agencies ,
Regulatory Agenda
As the “most ambitious legislative proposal since the inception of EU financial regulation”, the changes would make significant amendments to MiFID II and PRIIPs.
On 24 May 2023, the European Commission (Commission)...more
6/6/2023
/ Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD) ,
Best Interest Standard ,
Capital Markets Union ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Member State ,
MiFID ,
MiFID II ,
Packaged Retail And Insurance-Based Investment Products (PRIIPS) ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Retail Investors ,
Solvency II ,
UCITS
The spring of 2023 saw more dislocation in the global financial sector than any time since the 2008-09 financial crisis. In the US, banking institutions with over $500 billion in total assets failed, and other banks that were...more
6/5/2023
/ Banking Crisis ,
Banking Sector ,
Capital Requirements ,
Deposit Insurance ,
EU ,
Financial Crisis ,
Financial Regulatory Agencies ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Global Economy ,
Liquidity ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
UK
The timetable sets out three tranches of extensive regulatory changes to UK and EU law in 2023 and 2024.
The “Edinburgh Reforms”, a series of announcements made on 9 December 2022 by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, set...more
1/23/2023
/ Competition ,
EU ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services and Markets Act ,
Financial Services Industry ,
HM Treasury ,
Prospectus ,
Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) ,
Securitization ,
Solvency II ,
UK
The regulators suggest improvements to the supervision of firms passporting retail products and services in the EU.
The French and Dutch financial services regulators (the AFM and the AMF) have published a joint position...more
MiFID II introduced obligations to record telephone conversations and any electronic communications that are intended to lead to a transaction. Records must be kept for at least five years.
The COVID-19 pandemic, which...more
11/5/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Electronic Communications ,
Electronically Stored Information ,
EU ,
European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
MiFID II ,
Mobile Devices ,
Recording Requirements ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Remote Working ,
Videoconference
New ESMA guidance less strict than the established UK position on PFOF. On 13 July 2021, ESMA published a statement on payment for order flow (PFOF), the practice of brokers receiving payments from third parties for...more
7/16/2021
/ Brokers ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
EU ,
European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
MiFID II ,
Retail Investors ,
Securities Traders ,
Trading Policies ,
Trading Restrictions ,
UK
Proposals signal that the UK government is willing to diverge significantly from EU rules.
On 1 July 2021, HM Treasury published a consultation on its Wholesale Markets Review....more
7/2/2021
/ Commodities ,
Consultation ,
Derivatives ,
Equity Markets ,
EU ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
HM Treasury ,
MiFID ,
MiFID II ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Secondary Markets ,
Trading Policies ,
UK
The latest edition of our Private Bank Briefing provides a roundup of legal and compliance issues impacting private banks and their clients from Q2 2021.
In this edition, we cover sustainable finance developments, the...more
6/29/2021
/ Asset Protection ,
Banking Sector ,
Climate Change ,
Consultation ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Dear CEO Letter ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
FinTech ,
Libor ,
MiFID ,
Outsourcing ,
Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Retail Investors ,
Sustainable Finance ,
UK
The consultation proposes changes to rules on research and best execution reporting.
On 28 April 2021, the FCA published a Consultation Paper (CP21/9) on proposed changes to UK MiFID relating to research unbundling and...more
ESMA reminds firms on rules of reverse solicitation -
In a statement published on 13 January 2021, ESMA reminded firms not established or situated in the EU of the MiFID II requirements on the provision of investment...more
4/1/2021
/ Bank Holding Company ,
Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
Cloud Service Providers (CSPs) ,
CRD V ,
EU ,
European Benchmark Regulation (BMR) ,
European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Libor ,
MiFID II ,
Packaged Retail And Insurance-Based Investment Products (PRIIPS) ,
Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) ,
Retail Investors ,
Sustainable Finance ,
UK ,
UK Brexit
Ahead of the end of the Brexit transition period, on 31 December 2020, regulators in the UK and the EU have issued a number of updates:
Share trading obligation -
In relation to the potential conflict between the share...more
12/8/2020
/ Banking Sector ,
EU ,
European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Member State ,
MiFIR ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Securities ,
Share Trading Obligation (STO) ,
UK ,
UK Brexit
Equivalence decisions for EEA states, green finance and fintech initiatives are at the forefront of the UK government’s priorities.
On 9 November 2020, the UK Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, delivered a statement...more
11/12/2020
/ Bank of England ,
Banking Sector ,
Climate Change ,
EU ,
European Economic Area (EEA) ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Green Finance ,
HM Treasury ,
International Harmonization ,
Member State ,
UK ,
UK Brexit
However, ESMA’s proposed changes are less sweeping than required to achieve this aim.
Should the Brexit transition period end without a UK equivalence decision, ESMA has issued guidance to limit the impact on the trading...more
The UK government signals a diversion from the onshored regime towards a more flexible financial services regulatory framework.
HM Treasury has published a consultation paper marking the start of Phase II of its financial...more
The FCA, Bank of England, and PRA have published updated rules for firms post-Brexit and intend to delay many (but not all) onshoring changes.
Key Points:
..The FCA has published an updated version of the FCA Handbook,...more
10/20/2020
/ Bank of England ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Dear CEO Letter ,
EU ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Onshoring ,
Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) ,
Time Extensions ,
Transitional Arrangements ,
UK ,
UK Brexit
ESMA advises the European Commission to consider some, but not all, of ESMA’s original proposals — and gives guidance on pre-hedging and market soundings along the way.
Key Points:
..Pre-hedging / front running: ESMA...more
ESG and the reasonable investor test under MAR.
Background -
Historically, “profit maximisation” has been regarded as the sole (or predominant) objective for investors. Today, however, an ever-increasing proportion of...more
Many of the wide-ranging amendments address the perceived barriers MiFID II introduced in capital markets and are likely to be welcomed by industry.
Key Points:
..The amendments aim to remove administrative burdens that...more
Brexit: Latest Updates -
Private banks are currently going through a process of assessing the changes that need to be made to their systems and controls, in addition to client facing documentation, to facilitate the...more
Important changes ahead for investment firms as the FCA’s Discussion Paper (DP20/2) indicates that the UK may depart from EU capital rules.
Key Points:
..FCA consults on a UK capital regime that in some respects breaks...more
The English High Court’s findings are likely to have wide implications, not just for SIPP operators but for all regulated firms.
Key Points:
..Regulatory obligations are not intended to take precedence over contractual...more
The new guidelines reflect the European Commission’s aim to provide additional certainty for regulated entities outsourcing to cloud services.
On 3 June 2020, ESMA published a consultation paper on draft guidelines...more
Implications for users of third-country trading venues as ESMA confirms the list of venues who meet the criteria in its updated opinions on transparency and position limits.
On 3 June 2020, ESMA published updated versions...more