Financial Services Regulation and Compliance - Investment Firms October 2023
European
European Council publishes final compromise texts on MiFID II / MiFIR revisions
On 18 October 2023, the European Council published final compromise texts with regard to the proposed revision to the Markets in Financial Instruments Regulation (MiFIR) and the MiFID II Directive. The final texts are reflective of the provisional agreement that the European Council and the European Parliament reached on 29 June 2023.
The amendments relate to:
- enhancing market data transparency
- optimising orderly trading prohibit receiving payments for forwarding client orders
- removing obstacles to the emergence of consolidated tapes
The European Council has also published a note from the General Secretariat of the Council confirming that the Permanent Representatives Committee endorsed the final compromised texts. It also contained a letter by the Presidency of the Council to the European Parliament stating that should the European Parliament adopt the acts in the form agreed, the European Council will then proceed to adopt the acts.
ESMA launches CSA on MiFID II sustainability requirements
On 3 October 2023, ESMA announced the launch of a Common Supervisory Action (CSA) with National Competent Authorities (NCAs) on MiFID II sustainability requirements, with the CSAs to be carried out during 2024.
The goal of the CSA will be to assess the progress made by intermediaries in the application of the key sustainability requirements, which entered into application in 2022 following the amendments to the MiFID II Delegated Acts.
The CSA will cover:
- how firms collect information on their clients’ sustainability preferences
- which arrangements firms have put in place to understand and correctly categorise investment products with sustainability factors for the purpose of the suitability assessment
- how firms ensure the suitability of an investment with respect to sustainability
- how firms specify any sustainability-related objectives a product is compatible with as part of the target market assessment of the investment product
For more information on these topics please contact any member of A&L Goodbody's Asset Management & Investment Funds team.
Date published: 22 November 2023