AMAFI remains heavily involved in efforts to transpose the MiFID 2 framework into French law and prepare Level 3 tools (ESMA guidance and FAQs). Level 2 implementing measures, however, have yet to be published. While it now seems to have been unofficially decided that the framework’s entry into application needs to be put off by at least a year, the texts required for this remain to be adopted. Given all this, the transposition timetable established by France’s authorities is likely to be pushed back.
AMAFI took part in several meetings with the AMF, discussing questions of investor protection and reporting to the regulator. It is also in the process of crafting a response to the consultation paper published on 23 December by ESMA on its draft guidance for transaction reporting, order record keeping and clock synchronisation.
The obligation to identify a target market, as part of product governance covering the rights and obligations of producers and distributors of financial instruments, is a critical issue for affected institutions. It is vital that the discussions currently being conducted by ESMA to prepare Level 3 measures address a range of issues.
Although ESMA requires national authorities to maintain strict confidentiality regarding its work and is not planning to hold a public consultation, AMAFI nevertheless teamed up with sister associations in Germany, Italy and Poland to make a joint submission to ESMA and the Commission, while also keeping the AMF in the loop. On questions with such important consequences, interaction between regulators and stakeholders is critical, especially at a time when the Commission is launching its “Better Regulation” initiative. The joint contribution stressed the need to prioritise an approach that is proportionate to product complexity, to avoid unduly curtailing the options for distributing financial instruments to investors during a period when financing the economy is such a key concern for Europe.
