Podcast: ESMA Report: Undue Pressure on Companies
On 18 September 2024, the General Court of the European Union (General Court) largely upheld the fine imposed by the European Commission (Commission) finding that a global tech company had engaged in predatory pricing of its...more
Many governments are grappling with the question of how to regulate artificial intelligence to ensure it is adopted safely and used responsibly without hampering innovation. Governments have generally indicated similar...more
The Irish government has been supportive of the development of the financial services sector in Ireland and this extends to fintech. The government’s strategy for the development of Ireland’s international financial services...more
Those who have had to navigate and consider the EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) have faced its challenges and noted its deficiencies. Specifically, these have included data gaps, the SFDR’s use as a...more
We are pleased to share the June 2024 issue of Wilson Sonsini's Sustainability and ESG Advisory Practice Update. Each issue combines news, key legal developments, and resources related to sustainability and environmental,...more
In this week’s edition, our focus remains on carbon credits where the first ever set of “Core Carbon Principles”-labelled carbon credits were approved. The three European supervisory authorities publish their final reports on...more
In this week’s edition, we discuss the U.S. government’s proposed guidelines for the ever-controversial voluntary carbon markets. In the EU, ESMA published a report of its findings on greenwashing in the marketing materials...more
As part of the European Commission’s strategy for financing the transition to a sustainable economy, the EU has been debating for some time how best to put in place a regulatory regime for EU green bonds. This resulted in...more
In our previous alert “Acquiring or Investing in EU Crypto-Asset Businesses: MiCA’s Impact,” we discussed the impact of the European Union (EU) Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) on the acquisition or investment in EU...more
Key developments of interest over the last month include: the European Parliament’s ECON Committee adopting draft reports on the European Commission’s PSR and PSD3 legislative proposals; ESMA consulting on 'reverse...more
DeFi development carried quietly on throughout 2023, but DeFi protocols also faced significant hurdles. In the US, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) increased their...more
Welcome to the Regulation Round Up, a regular bulletin highlighting the latest developments in UK and EU financial services regulation. Key developments in December 2023: 21 December - UK / Swiss Regulatory...more
On 17 October 2023, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published a statement (the Statement) clarifying the timeline for implementation of the Regulation on Markets in Cryptoassets ((EU) 2023/1114) (MiCA)...more
U.S. Bank Launches Blockchain Network, Crypto Bank Gains Securities License - According to recent reports, the largest bank in the U.S. has gone live with its blockchain-based Tokenized Collateral Network (TCN) and...more
On 13 June 2023, the European Commission published a proposal for a regulation on the transparency and integrity of ESG rating activities, following concerns about the reliability, comparability and transparency of ESG...more
In a response to a call for evidence on greenwashing by the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the Securities and Markets Stakeholder Group (SMSG) emphasized the importance for EU authorities to ensure that any...more
The EU has published in the Official Journal of the European Union its Regulation on a pilot regime for market infrastructures based on distributed ledger technology. The pilot regime will permit certain DLT market...more
The European Commission published its long-awaited Strategy for Financing the Transition to a Sustainable Economy (the Strategy) today. The Strategy was announced as part of the European Green Deal in 2019 (originally...more
ANTITRUST AND COMPETITION - The Commission’s New Guidance Creates Legal Uncertainty for Merger Control in the EU - On 26 March 2021, the Commission published a new Guidance on the application of the EU upward case referral...more
ANTITRUST AND COMPETITION - The European Commission Consults on New EU Competition Rules for Distribution Agreements - The Vertical Block Exemption Regulation (VBER) and its accompanying Vertical Guidelines (VGL) are designed...more
The International Organization of Securities Commissions has published guidance on how to address potential conflicts of interest and associated conduct risks for intermediaries involved in the issuance of debt securities....more
What is the law/regulation? As part of a number of regulatory initiatives being implemented in the European Union, under its action plan for financing sustainable growth, proposed amendments to AIFMD and the UCITS Directive...more
Fulfilling its mandate under the European Commission's FinTech Action Plan to map the current authorization and licensing approaches for innovative FinTech business models in Europe, the European Securities and Markets...more
On 12 July 2019 the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) reported on the status of FinTech firm licensing regimes across the EU, based on two ESMA surveys of EU national competent authorities (NCAs). ESMA's report...more
The EU sustainable finance market has developed organically, guided by voluntary but universally accepted principles. According to recent research, climate change could cost up to 19 per cent. of Global GDP by the end of...more