ESMA highlights Brexit and MiFID 2 issues

Steven Maijoor spoke to ECON as part of the annual hearing of the chairs of the ESAs. He focussed on 3 main priorities for ESMA:

• MiFID 2 implementation and ESMA’s efforts to ensure regulatory convergence. He highlighted the Q&As and Opinions ESMA has issued with this in mind. He expressed some optimism over ESMA’s readiness to operate within the new framework but highlighted the resource constraints under which it operates;
• Brexit and ESMA’s work on addressing relocation issues and the possibility for regulatory arbitrage. He said ESMA has also been looking at the potential risks to investors and markets of a cliff-edge, and considering the mitigating actions ESMA could take; and
• third country issues, triggered by Brexit discussions, but looking more widely at whether the current equivalence model is fit for purpose. He also noted the proposal to make the ESAs the direct supervisors of third country firms, which he welcomed.