Category: MiFID 2
Indirect Clearing: In Search of One Template To Rule Them All
Background EMIR introduced a clearing obligation in relation to “OTC derivative contracts” of any class that has been declared subject to a clearing obligation and which are transacted between particular types of counterparty[1]. MiFIR[2] extended the scope of the clearing obligation to all derivative transactions concluded on a regulated market. There are three basic ways […]
MiFID II ITS final report no. 3
On 11 December 2015 ESMA issued the latest set of MiFID II Implementing Technical Standards (ITS). The ITS delineates the practical standards which will give uniform effect to the regulatory Technical Standard’s delegated acts- Euro legalese for what generally amounts to a set of prescribed forms and rules for their completion. This third ruleset, succeeding […]
MiFID II FCA November Roundtable
The FCA yesterday published the minutes of its November 2015 MiFID II implementation roundtable. Unsurprisingly, the first questions concerned possible delay to the application date and the consequences upon other MiFID II dates and related legislation. The FCA believes any change of application date is not linked to Level 2 completion, that the MAR timeline […]
MiFID II complex debt defined quite simply
ESMA has issued a Final Report containing guidelines on which debt instruments and structured deposits will be considered “non-complex” under MiFID II. Article 25(4) allows firms to transact non-complex on behalf of customers without applying the Article 25(3) appropriateness test. The report follows the 24 March 2015 consultation paper, includes an analysis of its results […]
MiFID II delay and uncertainty now certain
The EP has today published an official statement accepting a one year delay of MiFID II’s entry into force. Penned by Markus Ferber, the Parliament’s Rapporteur for MifiD II and on behalf of its MiFID II negotiation team, the short statement proffers a conditional acceptance of delay: “The European Parliament’s negotiation team has informed the […]
MiFID 2 holed below the waterline
ESMA have published an internal note dated 2 October 2015 outlining the necessity for and certainty of delay in a number of core MiFID 2 provisions, the likely extent of such delay and the various means of effecting it. The note refers to the sequential nature of MiFID 2 implementation, the complexity of certain interdependent […]
MiFID II- Delay, Dismay, Disarray
The first two days of this week have witnessed an increasingly loud chorus calling for a delay to the implementation of MiFID II. Martin Merlin, Commission FS Director, yesterday told the EU Economic Affairs Committee that the “simplest and most legally sound approach would be to delay the whole package by one year”. Speaking at […]
MIFID 2 FCA Roundtable minutiae
The FCA has published the minutes of their 22 October MiFID II Implementation Roundtable attended by FCA officials and a panoply of trade associations (TAs). Items of note as follows: Forthcoming FCA consultations. The FCA confirmed its plan to publish a draft Handbook Guide to MiFID II, focussing on the UK’s implementation. The agency will […]
FMLC asks for indirect clearing direction
The Financial Markets Law Committee (FMLC) has published a paper detailing its concerns over the Article 30(2) MiFIR indirect clearing mandate. Article 30 MiFIR allows access to a CCP by a “client of a client of a clearing member” (indirect client). While the RTS still languishes in draft form, pending possible adjustments to the EMIR […]
MifID II/MiFIR RTS has landed
As promised, ESMA has published final draft MiFID II/MiFIR regulatory and implementing technical standards. In case regulatory teams weren’t already reeling from the 552 pages of the MiFID II RTS, ESMA also published technical standards for MiFID II interdependent MAD/MAR and CSDR, making a total of 2505 pages of which every word will be pored […]