On 22 May ESMA released two documents for public comment regarding the Level 2 measures foreseen under the recently agreed MiFID and MiFIR texts. Both consultations have a response deadline of 1 August 2014 and are made up of the following:
- Consultation Paper on MiFID II/MiFIR Technical Advice (for Delegated Acts) - ESMA needs to deliver this advice to the European Commission by December 2014 and is therefore subject to a condensed consultation process
- Discussion Paper on MiFID II/MiFIR draft RTS/ITS - this will provide the basis for a further consultation paper which is expected to be issued at the end of 2014
ESMA will hold three public hearings on secondary markets, investor protection and commodity derivatives issues on Monday 7 and Tuesday 8 July. Further details on the hearings and how to register will be published on ESMA’s website.
Chair of ESMA Steven Maijoor said: ‘The launch of today’s MiFID II/MiFIR consultation process is an important step in the biggest overhaul of financial markets regulation in the EU for a decade. The reform of MiFID is an integral part of the EU’s strategy to address the effects of the financial crisis and aims to bring greater transparency to markets and to strengthen investor protection. These changes are key to restoring trust in our financial markets. We appreciate the magnitude of this exercise for stakeholders. We strongly encourage all those affected by these reforms to provide their views to ensure that we take them into account in our final proposals’.
