The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority has published a statement confirming its approach to supervising commodity derivatives position limits. The statement follows the FCA's Supervisory Statement on the operation of the...more
The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority has published a statement in which it confirms that it will amend the Technical Standards and related Handbook provisions to align with the extended exemption from the requirements of the...more
An EU Commission Delegated Regulation (2021/2268) amending the Regulatory Technical Standards supplementing the EU Packaged Retail Investment and Insurance-based Products Regulation has been published in the Official Journal...more
European Commissioner McGuinness has announced that in early 2022 the European Commission will be proposing an extension of the time-limited equivalence granted to U.K. CCPs...more
The European Commission has published legislative proposals to amend the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive and the Markets in Financial Instruments Regulation. The proposals are part of the Commission's package of...more
HM Treasury has launched a consultation, the Financial Services Future Regulatory Framework Review: Proposals for Reform. The consultation paper presents the government's response to the feedback received to the October 2020...more
The European Securities and Markets Authority has issued a statement on the requirements under the EU Market Abuse Regulation for firms and individuals that make investment recommendations on social media. ESMA is concerned...more
The International Organization of Securities Commissions has published an updated Principles on Outsourcing for regulated market participants in the securities markets. The updated Principles are based on IOSCO’s 2005...more
An EU Commission Delegated Regulation (2021/1833) on the criteria for when an activity will be considered as ancillary to the main business has been published in the Official Journal of the European Union. The changes to the...more
The European Union’s financial regulatory regime for third-country access in many sectors relies on a framework of “equivalence,” whereby institutions based in approved non-EU countries with similar standards may have varying...more
10/22/2020
/ EIOPA ,
EMIR ,
EU ,
European Banking Authority (EBA) ,
European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
FinTech ,
MiFID II ,
MiFIR ,
UK ,
UK Brexit
The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in unprecedented disruption to worldwide markets and personal livelihoods, affecting global companies, small companies and main street businesses alike. As business owners struggle to...more
The European Union’s financial regulatory regime for third-country access in many sectors relies on a framework of “equivalence,” whereby institutions based in approved non-EU countries with similar standards may have varying...more
The economic and operational stresses caused by the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) are highlighting the need for regulated financial institutions to formulate responses to address significant business disruptions (SBDs) and to...more
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has announced regulatory forbearance for banks and investment firms subject to the upcoming reporting obligation under the Securities Financing Transaction Regulation...more
European Securities and Markets Authority Takes Steps to Improve Transparency in Light of Disruption to EU Financial Markets Arising from COVID-19 Pandemic -
Effective 16 March 2020, all holders of net short positions in...more
The U.K. House of Commons has approved the Withdrawal Agreement. Assuming this is ratified by the EU, and Royal Assent is achieved in time, the U.K. will leave the EU on January 31, 2020, entering into a “transition” or...more
1/15/2020
/ Cross-Border Transactions ,
Data Protection ,
EU ,
EU Action Plans ,
European Commission ,
Federal Agency Taskforce ,
Financial Markets ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Framework Agreement ,
UK ,
UK Brexit
The EU proposals to amend technical aspects of the European Market Infrastructure Regulation (EMIR), known colloquially as ‘EMIR 2.1’ or ‘EMIR Refit’, have been politically agreed. The final text is likely to be published in...more
4/3/2019
/ Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD) ,
Alternative Investment Funds ,
Amended Regulation ,
Counterparties ,
EMIR ,
EU ,
European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) ,
ISDA ,
No-Deal Brexit ,
Third Country Entities (TCEs) ,
Transitional Arrangements ,
UK Brexit
Non-EU banking groups (“non-EU groups”) with large EU operations will be required to establish an EU intermediate parent undertaking (“IPU”) according to the final changes to the Capital Requirements Directive (“CRD 5”)...more
3/26/2019
/ Banking Sector ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Capital Requirements ,
EU ,
FDIC ,
Foreign Banks ,
Intermediate Holding Company (IHCs) ,
Investment Firms ,
New Legislation ,
Third Country Entities (TCEs) ,
UK ,
UK Brexit
This client memorandum concerns a highly technical point of considerable practical importance. It challenges aspects of the received wisdom that, for post-Brexit cross-border investment business conducted from the U.K. into...more
Many EU and U.K. financial institutions have been waiting with bated breath for (and commencing their contingency plans without) a clear picture of what post-Brexit U.K.-EU financial services will look like. In this note we...more
8/21/2018
/ Central Counterparties ,
EMIR ,
EU ,
EU Passport ,
European Economic Area (EEA) ,
European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
HM Treasury ,
Senior Management Regime (SMR) ,
Short Selling ,
Third Country Entities (TCEs) ,
UK ,
UK Brexit
The European Commission today published a communication addressing the possible consequences of a hard Brexit. In it, they discuss the long-standing question of the continuity of contracts that straddle the Brexit date. This...more
The U.K.’s HM Treasury has set out its approach to the grandfathering of EU27 businesses on Brexit and to how existing EU financial services directives and regulations are to be adopted into U.K. law at the moment of Brexit...more
On April 18, 2018, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) took the long-awaited step of proposing rules, interpretations and guidance (the “Proposed Rules”) that would seek to enhance and clarify the standards of...more
4/25/2018
/ Best Interest Standard ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Comment Period ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
EU ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Investment Adviser ,
MiFID II ,
Packaged Retail And Insurance-Based Investment Products (PRIIPS) ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Retirement Plan ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
UK
Guidance of questionable legal accuracy from the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) casts doubt on the ability of non-EU members of EU exchanges to provide client access to such exchanges through a technique...more
On 20 September 2017, the European Commission made proposals to strengthen the regulatory and supervisory powers of the three European Supervisory Agencies (ESAs) namely the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA),...more