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21/12/2016 2016/1682 2016-1682 Press Release on Feedback Statement on ESEF Corporate Disclosure, European Single Electronic Format, Press Releases, Transparency Press Release PDF
30/05/2017 ESMA70-145-103 Communication on launch of reference data submission under MAR Market Abuse, Market Integrity Opinion PDF
11/06/2020 ESMA71-99-1342 Decision Short Selling Reporting Renewal Statement COVID-19, Market Integrity, Press Releases, Short Selling Press Release PDF
esma70-155-10189_esma_decision_-_renewal_article_28_ssr_reporting_threshold.pdf
26/09/2017 ESMA71-99-599 EBA and ESMA provide guidance to assess the suitability of management body members and key function holders Guidelines and Technical standards, Joint Committee, MiFID - Investor Protection, Press Releases Press Release PDF
The European Banking Authority (EBA) and the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) have published their joint Guidelines to assess the suitability of members of management bodies and key function holders.
esma71-99-598_joint_esma_and_eba_guidelines_eba-gl-2017-12.pdf
24/07/2014 2014/61 EBA, ESMA and EIOPA consult on technical standards for financial conglomerates risk concentration and intra-group transactions Joint Committee, Press Releases Press Release PDF
79.27 KB The Joint Committee of the three European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs - EBA, ESMA and EIOPA) launched today a consultation on draft Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS) on risk concentration and intra-group transactions within financial conglomerates. The technical standards aim at enhancing supervisory consistency in the application of the Financial Conglomerates Directive (FICOD). The consultation runs until 24 October 2014. The objective of the draft RTS is to clarify which risk concentrations and intra-group transactions within a financial conglomerate should be considered as significant. In addition, the RTS provide some supervisory measures for coordinators and other relevant competent authorities when identifying types of significant risk concentration and intra-group transactions, their associated thresholds and reports, where appropriate. The consultation paper is available on the websites of the three ESAs: EBA, ESMA and EIOPA. Comments to this consultation paper can be sent to the Joint Committee. Legal background The three ESAs have developed these RTS in accordance with Article 21a (1a) of Directive 2002/87/EC (FICOD), which mandates the three ESAs, through the Joint Committee, to develop RTS to clarify the definitions on risk concentration and intra-group transactions provided in Article 2 of the FICOD and to coordinate the provisions laid down in Articles 7 and 8 and Annex II.
11/04/2012 JC/2012/30 EBA, ESMA and EIOPA publish two reports on Money Laundering Joint Committee, Press Releases Press Release PDF
11/01/2016 2016/28 Emergency measure by the Greek HCMC under Section 1 of Chapter V of Regulation (EU) No 236/2012 on short selling and certain aspects of credit default swaps Market Integrity, Short Selling Opinion PDF
Emergency measure by the Greek HCMC under Section 1 of Chapter V of Regulation (EU) No 236/2012 on short selling and certain aspects of credit default swaps
I.Legal basis
According to Article 27(2) of Regulation (EU) No 236/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 March 2012 on short selling and certain aspects of credit default swaps (the Regulation), the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) shall within 24 hours of the notification having been made by a competent authority under Article 26 of the Regulation issue an opinion on whether it considers the measure or proposed measure necessary to address exceptional circumstances.
ESMA's competence to deliver an opinion is based on Article 29(1)(a) of Regulation (EC) No 1095/2010 (ESMA Regulation). In accordance with Article 44(1) of the ESMA Regulation the Board of Supervisors has adopted this opinion.
II.Previous measures adopted by the Hellenic Capital Market Commission (HCMC)
On the 29th of June 2015, ESMA issued an opinion on an emergency measure proposed by the HCMC under Article 20 of the Regulation. The measure consisted of a temporary prohibition of transactions in any financial instrument that create, or increase, a net short position on any of the shares admitted to trading on the Athens Exchange and the Multilateral Trading Facility of "EN.A" (Alternative Market of the Athens Exchange) of which the relevant Competent Authority is HCMC and was applied from 30th June 2015 at 00.00.01 CET to the 6th July 2015 at 24:00:00 (CET).
The HCMC indicated that the measure was a complementary action to the ones already established on the 29th of June 2015 by the Greek Authorities in order to tackle the broader Greek financial system crisis.
On the 6th, the 13th, the 20th and the 27th of July and on the 3rd of August 2015, some of the measures adopted by the Greek authorities were renewed until the 30th of August 2015.
On the 31st of August 2015, in accordance with Article 26 of the Regulation, the HCMC introduced a new emergency measure under Article 20 of the Regulation consisting in a ban on short selling of shares and units of Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) admitted to trading on the Athens Exchange and the Multilateral Trading Facility of "EN.A" (Alternative Market of the Athens Exchange) of which the relevant Competent Authority is the HCMC. It also concerned all depository receipts (ADRs, GDRs) representing shares admitted to trading on the Athens Exchange and the Multilateral Trading Facility of "EN.A" (Alternative Market of the Athens Exchange). The short selling measure applied to any natural or legal person, irrespective of their country of residence, but contained the exemption for market making activities, provided that short selling transactions were conducted for hedging purposes. The emergency measure adopted on August 31st expired at 24:00:00 (CET) on the 30th of September 2015.
In respect of all the above cases, the HCMC notified ESMA and other competent authorities of its intention to impose/renew the relevant short selling measures in accordance with Article 26 of the Regulation and ESMA issued in all cases a positive opinion concerning the imposition/renewal of the relevant short selling measure pursuant to Article 27(2) of the Regulation.
III.Present measure
On the 30th of September 2015, in accordance with Article 26 of the Regulation, the HCMC notified ESMA and other competent authorities of its intention to make use of its powers of intervention in exceptional circumstances and to introduce a new emergency measure under Article 20 of the Regulation.
The measure consisted in a ban on short selling of shares of five credit institutions admitted to trading on the Athens Exchange and comprising the FTSE/Athex Banks Index, irrespective of the venue where the transaction was executed. The temporary prohibition included sales of shares covered by subsequent intraday purchases. The temporary prohibition of short selling applied to all depository receipts (ADRs, GDRs) and warrants representing shares of such credit institutions admitted to trading on the Athens Exchange and comprising the FTSE/Athex Banks Index.
The above mentioned credit institutions were:
Alpha Bank A.E. (ISIN GRS015013006)
Attica Bank S.A. (ISIN GRS001003003)
National Bank of Greece S.A. (ISIN GRS003003019)
Eurobank Ergasias S.A. (ISIN GRS323003004)
Piraeus Bank S.A. (ISIN GRS014003008)
In the notification, the HCMC explained the reason for the measure was that in July 2015 the Eurogroup agreed on a specific package of measures regarding the development of the Greek Economy, the most important element of the Eurogroup agreement being that 25 billion euros would be earmarked for the re-capitalisation needs of the Greek Banking system. Nevertheless, the amount of funds needed to secure the capital adequacy of the Greek banks, and most importantly, the legal framework that would apply in relation to such re-capitalisation, including whether some incentives for private shareholders will be provided or not, had not been officially disclosed at the time.
On the 30th of September 2015, ESMA issued a positive opinion (ESMA/2015/1489) regarding this new emergency measure. The measure entered into force as of 00:00:01 hours (CET) on the 1st of October 2015 and the original expiring date was the 9th of November 2014 24:00:00 hours (CET).
On the 9th of November 2015 and on 7th of December 2015, the HCMC notified ESMA and other competent authorities of its intention to make use of its powers of intervention in exceptional circumstances and to renew the emergency measure originally introduced on the 30th of September 2015. On the same days ESMA issued positive opinions regarding these renewals (ESMA/2015/1638 and ESMA/2015/1854), which expired on the 21st of December 2015 at 24:00:00 (CET).
The proposed renewals in November and December 2015 concerned exactly the same instruments as the original measure (see paragraph 9 and 10), foreseeing an exemption for market making activities in the affected financial instruments.
In the notifications for the renewals, the HCMC considered that adverse circumstances were persisting in the Greek capital market, including also the existence of capital controls in respect of stock exchange transactions, but mainly in connection with the re-capitalisation of the systemic credit institutions that was not finalised yet, resulting in persistent market uncertainty that posed threats to the financial stability and the general level of market confidence
The HCMC explained that the re-capitalisation of the Greek Banking System, that the law voted by the Greek Parliament on October 31st 2015 provides for, was actually in progress and had not been yet concluded for all credit institutions. Moreover, considering that the trading in the new shares issued from the relevant capital raising had not yet been started in all cases, the HCMC argued that, the lifting of the ban on short sales would tend to increase price volatility on listed credit institutions and would increase market uncertainty.
Taking into consideration that the market behaviour of banking sector securities has traditionally played a very important role in driving overall market valuations, concerns remained as regards unexpected sudden and significant swings in market confidence and therefore in relevant asset prices. The HCMC added that the successful conclusion of the aforementioned bank re-capitalisation and restructuring process as well as the commencement of trading of the new shares of all credit institutions were thus absolutely necessary, in order to safeguard the stability of the financial system and of the Greek capital market.
On the 21st December 2015, the HCMC notified ESMA and other competent authorities of its intention to make use of its powers of intervention in exceptional circumstances and to renew the current emergency measure introduced on the 30th of September 2015 once more, but this time with a limited scope.
The renewed measure consisted of a ban on short selling limited only to the shares of Attica Bank S.A. (ISIN GRS001003011) admitted to trading on the Athens Exchange, irrespective of the venue where the transaction is executed. The temporary prohibition included sales of shares covered by subsequent intraday purchases. The temporary prohibition of short selling applied to all depository receipts (ADRs, GDRs) and warrants representing shares of Attica Bank S.A. (ISIN GRS001003011) admitted to trading on the Athens Exchange. As for previous bans, an exemption for market making activities in the affected financial instruments would be foreseen.
In the notification for the partial renewal, the HCMC explained that the re-capitalisation of the Greek Banking System, based on the law 4340/2015 voted by the Greek Parliament on October 31st 2015, was still not fully concluded. Re-capitalisation of Attica Bank was still on-going. HCMC indicated that the capital increase was to be concluded at the latest by the 31st of December 2015 and that, subject to the successful completion of the issue, the trading of the new shares of Attica Bank was expected early January 2016, and thus the effect on the share price of this credit institution and on the volatility this trading might impose, had not yet been fully evaluated by market participants.
The HCMC considered that the lifting of the ban on short sales on Attica Bank shares would tend to increase price volatility on the institution and would increase market uncertainty. Within this context, the HCMC argued that, as done previously for the other banks for which the short selling ban applied during the re-capitalisation process and also covered a few trading days of the new shares, the proposed renewal should be limited to Attica Bank and should expire on the 11th of January 2016.
In the notification, the HCMC also explained that the proposed limited temporary ban of short-selling concerning shares of Attica Bank admitted to trading on the Athens Exchange was not expected to significantly impair price discovery and therefore market efficiency. Given that the main liquidity and trading activity on those instruments normally is located within Greece, the HCMC believed the proposed renewal would not create disproportionate negative effects, since it would affect a fairly small part of the EU overall market.
On the 21st of December 2015, ESMA issued a positive opinion regarding the renewal of the emergency measure (ESMA/2015/1900), which is expiring on the 11st of January 2016 at 24:00:00 (CET).
On the 11th January 2016, the HCMC notified ESMA and other competent authorities of its intention to make use of its powers of intervention in exceptional circumstances and to renew the emergency measure introduced on the 21st of December renewal as described in paragraph 19 above, namely Attica Bank.
In the notification of renewal of the measure for Attica Bank, the HCMC indicated that the re-capitalisation of the Greek banking system is not yet fully completed, the one of Attica Bank still being in progress. Even though the capital increase of Attica Bank was finalised since the end of December 2015, the trading of the new shares has not started yet. Both the dates of the delivery of the new shares to the beneficiaries of the capital increase and of their admission to trading remain to be announced by Attica Bank and the Stock Market operator. The HCMC expects this will take place within the next week following the relevant decision of the Athens Exchange.
Within this context, the HCMC argues that the short selling ban on Attica Bank should be extended to also cover a few trading days of the new shares to ensure equal treatment with the banks that had undertaken and concluded the re-capitalisation process before. Furthermore, the HCMC considers that such an extension would mitigate any possible risk of market volatility of the shares of Attica Bank and respond to any possibility of market uncertainty.
In the notification, the HCMC also explained that the proposed limited temporary ban of short-selling concerning shares of Attica Bank admitted to trading on the Athens Exchange was not expected to significantly impair price discovery and therefore market efficiency. The proposed renewal of the emergency measure should be in force as of 00:00:01 hours (CET) on the 11th January 2016 until 24:00:00 (CET) on the 25 January 2016.
IV.Opinion
ESMA is adopting the following opinion on the measure notified on the 11 January 2016, on the basis of Article 27(2) of the Regulation:
On the adverse events or developments
ESMA considers that adverse developments which constitute a serious threat to market confidence in Greece could be understood as having considerably decreased with the successful completion of the share capital increase of Attica bank as announced by that bank on the 30th December 2015. Attica Bank has been the last of the five banks to undertake the re-capitalisation process envisaged under Greek law. It represented less than 1 % of the total market capitalisation of the 5 re-capitalised banks before the Attica capital increase and less than 7% after the increase. It also stands for a very small fraction of the Greek banking sector. Not surprisingly, and unlike the other banks mentioned in paragraph 10 above, Attica Bank is not a significant supervised entity under the direct supervision of the ECB.
Although acknowledging that the successful and full conclusion of all the Greek banks' re-capitalisation is important in order to safeguard the stability of the financial system as a whole and of the Greek capital market, as well as the protection of investors, ESMA considers that given that the capital increase of Attica Bank is agreed, priced, subscribed and publicly announced on the 30th of December 2015, the threat to the financial stability of the bank, and more widely to the financial stability of the Greek financial market, is much less acute than in December 2015.
ESMA notes that the trading of the newly issued shares further to the completed capital increase has not started yet and thus there is a risk of increased volatility in the relevant market and that the confidence in the concerned bank could be affected if price movements were extreme. However, the evolution of the stock price of Attica Bank during the last month does not point towards, on average, a significant downward pressure on the prices. The volatility observed on Attica Bank is relative to the currently volatile stock markets in the EU.
In the trading figures of Attica Bank shares since late November 2015, it is evident that the trading volumes have reduced progressively but the price of the stock has not suffered from a downward price spiral. Only in one occasion (10 December2015) the stock price fell more than 10% in a single session. In general, looking at the last 30 trading sessions, the price has increased by 37%. In the last 10 trading sessions, the price has moved in an overall range (counting intraday minimum and maximum values) of 13% around the average closing price of the period. In terms of closing prices, the maximum fluctuation has been -3,97% since 22 December (observed on January 7 2016). Putting these moves in the context of quite volatile EU stock markets, linked to the international market trends, it is questionable whether the volatility of the stock price of Attica Bank could be qualified as extreme or even high. Obviously, one could argue that the price has found a support thanks, among other things, to the existing ban on short sales. While it is extremely difficult to isolate the price effect of the short selling ban with current data, it is ESMA's view that, all in all, the pricing history of the stock does not give the impression of a highly fragile situation.
The main risk related with extreme volatility in a re-capitalisation exercise arises when the issuance price of the new shares and the allotment of the volume to be subscribed is not yet complete. In that scenario, significant (downward) price movements can dis-incentivise the investors that were considering to subscribe to new shares or can affect the issuance price in a manner that the re-capitalisation (in terms of the effective amount of funds to be received by the bank) can be put at risk. Once the pricing and the subscription are firm, price moves have a much lower impact on the success prospects of a re-capitalisation. They mainly affect the willingness of the new investors to hold their new shares or to sell them when the new shares start to trade. But the effects of this process on the financial stability of the entity are much less direct than when the volatility scenario precedes the establishment of the price and of the allotment of the capital increase. The latter was the prevalent scenario in most of the other occasions in which the measures of the HCMC was extended and on which ESMA issued positive opinions in the past. In ESMA's opinion, such scenarios should be distinguished from the case at hand.
The question of whether the risk of falling prices on Attica Bank shares (which has not yet been observed) would endanger the orderly functioning of the whole Greek financial market and its integrity is not evident to ESMA, due to the small size of this particular institution and to the fact that the only pending element is the formal admission to trading of the new shares.
On the appropriateness and proportionality of the proposed measure
ESMA considers that the renewal of the emergency measure limited to the shares of Attica Bank is not appropriate and proportionate to address the above mentioned potential threat stemming from the volatility of the price of the market of Attica Bank shares. Given that the share capital increase of Attica Bank is firm and definitive as well as publicly known, ESMA considers that the prohibition of short sales in the shares of Attica Bank admitted to trading on the Athens Exchange will only serve the purpose of assisting in reducing market volatility until the final admission of the new shares and the first days of their trading. While this may be a positive goal, ESMA notes that the situation of Attica Bank is very different from the ones of the other Greek banks both in terms of quantitative significance with respect to financial stability (much smaller in the case of Attica Bank) and in terms of the timing in the process of re-capitalisation (given that only the final listing of the new shares is pending, as opposed to the fixing of the issuance price and the allotment of the subscriptions).
ESMA is thus of the view that there are alternative tools and measures, including those provided by Article 23 of the Short Selling Regulation consisting in a short term restriction of short selling in case of a significant fall in price, to address extreme market volatility concerns, should this volatility materialise in the coming days and more specifically risks of a downward spiral of the price of Attica shares. Those measures would be in ESMA's opinion more appropriate and proportionate to address the risks that would arise from that situation than a total ban on short sales.
On the duration of the proposed measure
Considering the above negative opinion on the appropriateness and proportionality of the measure, ESMA is not further assessing the duration of the proposed renewal.
30/04/2013 2013/542 Emergency measure by the Greek HCMC under Section 1 of Chapter V of Regulation No 236/2012 on short selling and certain aspects of credit default swaps Short Selling, Market Integrity Opinion PDF
23/04/2020 JC 2020 41 ESAs consult on Environmental, Social and Governance disclosure rules Joint Committee, Sustainable finance Press Release PDF
11/11/2015 JC/2015/078 ESAs consult on PRIIPs key information for retail investors Fund Management, Joint Committee, Press Releases Press Release PDF
31/08/2012 JC/2012/70 ESAs consult on the application of the capital calculation methods for financial conglomerates Joint Committee, Press Releases Press Release PDF
04/12/2015 JC/2015/087 ESAs issue discussion paper on automation in financial advice Joint Committee, Press Releases Press Release PDF
05/05/2015 JC/2015/02 ESAs- main risks to EU financial market stability have intensified Risk Analysis & Economics - Markets Infrastructure Investors, Press Releases, Joint Committee Press Release PDF
125.34 KB The Joint Committee of the European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) published its fifth Report on Risks and Vulnerabilities in the EU Financial System. Overall, the report found that in the past six months, risks affecting the EU financial system have not changed in substance, but have further intensified. The EU's economic performance improved slightly in early 2015, however the financial sector in general continues to be affected by a combination of factors such as low investment demand, economic uncertainty in the Eurozone and its neighbouring countries, a global economic slow-down and a low-interest rate environment. The main risks affecting the financial system remain broadly unchanged from those identified in the report's previous edition, but have become more entrenched. The major risks include: •	Low growth, low inflation, volatile asset prices and their consequences for financial entities; •	Search for yield behaviour exacerbated by potential rebounds; •	Deterioration in the conduct of business; and •	Increased concern about IT risks and cyber-attacks. Despite these risks, a number of ongoing policy and regulatory initiatives are contributing to improving the stability and confidence in the financial system as well as facilitating additional funding channels to the real economy. These include ongoing regulatory reforms in the securities, banking and insurance sectors such as the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II) and Regulation (MiFIR), the work on the implementation of the Capital Requirements Directive and Regulation (CRDIV/CRR), the work on the Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive (BRRD), the Deposit-Guarantee Schemes Directive (DGS) and the Solvency II Directive, as well as the European Commission's plan for a Capital Markets Union (CMU). Steven Maijoor, Chair of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) and the current Chairman of the Joint Committee, said: "The Joint Committee has noted some improvement in overall market conditions; however, the recovery is not yet sustained and is exposed to risks related to broad macroeconomic conditions, in particular the low interest environment and resulting search-for-yield behaviour. Additionally regulators continue to have concerns about the operational risks generated by some financial institutions' inappropriate business conduct, as well as those risks posed by inadequate management of IT risks. "However, recent regulatory initiatives across the banking, insurance and securities sectors, such as the Comprehensive Assessment, the insurance sector stress test and Solvency II along with, the ongoing MiFID, EMIR and PRIPS reforms are contributing to improving the stability and confidence in the EU financial system." Key Risks Identified The identified risks in the Report can be divided into macro risks to the EU financial system and economy and operational risks. Macro Risks The key macro risks identified relate to: 1.	Risks from weak economic growth and low inflation environment, which include: •	Adverse effect that low interest rates and uncertainties about the economic recovery have had on the outlook for the financial industry; •	Higher valuation and market liquidity risk has raised concerns about the outlook for financial entities' stability in the event of reversals in interest rates and asset prices; 2.	Low profitability is motivating financial institutions and other investors to search for yield, which requires increased supervisory attention to the viability of business models, related restructuring activity and adequate management of risks. However, the promotion of sound and innovative business models for market-based funding structures could help to deliver additional stimulus; and 3.	Some continued doubts on the comparability and consistency of banks' calculations of risk weighted assets. Operational Risks The key operational risks relate to: 4.	Business conduct risk remains a key concern with the Report recommending that supervisors should include misconduct costs in future stress tests where appropriate, while financial institutions should strengthening product oversight and governance frameworks. Further improvements in the regulatory framework and supervisory practices to address conduct risks are also warranted. In addition, further progress needs to be made on benchmark reforms where continuity and integrity remain a source of concern even if key panels remained stable; and 5.	IT operational risk and cyber risk remain of great concern and pose challenges to the the safety and integrity of financial institutions. IT risk increased due to costs pressures, outsourcing, the need for additional capacities and a mounting number of cyber-attacks. The adequate integration of IT risk into overall risk management is a key policy for mitigation.
26/03/2021 JC 2021 16 ESAs' Opinion to the European Commission on the Jurisdictional Scope of Application of the SECR Joint Committee, Securitisation Opinion PDF
11/11/2013 2013/1635 ESMA announces financial statements' enforcement priorities for 2013 Corporate Disclosure, IFRS Supervisory Convergence, Press Releases Press Release PDF
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published its European Common Enforcement Priorities (Priorities) for 2013. These Priorities are to be used by European Economic Area (EEA) national authorities in their assessment of listed companies' 2013 financial statements. ESMA has defined these Priorities in order to promote the consistent application of IFRS across the EEA. Listed companies and their auditors should take account of the areas set out in the Priorities when preparing and auditing the IFRS financial statements for the year ending 31 December 2013. The Priorities identified refer to the application of IFRS in relation to: • Impairment of non-financial assets; • Measurement and disclosure of post-employment benefit obligations; • Fair value measurement and disclosure; • Disclosures related to significant accounting policies, judgements and estimates; and • Measurement of financial instruments and disclosure of related risks. Steven Maijoor, ESMA Chair, said: "ESMA, in setting out these enforcement priorities for listed companies financial statements, aims to ensure that the IFRS recognition, measurement and disclosure principles are consistently applied across the EEA. "Consistent application of accounting standards is a key factor in ensuring the transparency and accuracy of the financial information which investors rely upon, and ultimately contributes to the proper functioning of Europe's capital markets. "Finally, considering the focus on asset quality in the financial sector, listed financial institutions and their auditors should pay particular attention to properly measuring financial instruments and the accurate disclosure of related risks." ESMA and the national competent authorities will monitor the application of the IFRS requirements outlined in the Priorities, with national authorities incorporating them into their reviews and taking corrective actions where appropriate. In addition to these Priorities, national authorities may also focus on other locally relevant areas as part of their review. Therefore, national enforcement processes may not be limited to the specific issues contained in this statement. ESMA will collect data on how European listed entities have applied the Priorities and will publish its findings on these Priorities in early 2015. It expects to publish its findings on the 2012 Priorities in early 2014.
01/07/2015 2015/1015 ESMA assessment of Israeli laws and regulations on prospectuses Corporate Disclosure Opinion PDF
14/11/2013 2013/1650 ESMA begins preparatory work for new Market Abuse Regime Market Abuse, Market Integrity, Press Releases Press Release PDF
95.26 KB ESMA begins preparatory work for new Market Abuse Regime The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published a Discussion Paper setting out its initial views on the implementing measures it will have to develop for the new Market Abuse Regulation (MAR). MAR aims to enhance market integrity and investor protection. It will achieve this by updating and strengthening the existing market abuse framework, by extending its scope to new markets and trading strategies, and by introducing new requirements. The Discussion Paper presents positions and regulatory options on those issues where ESMA will have to develop MAR implementing measures, likely to include Regulatory Technical Standards, Delegated Acts and Guidelines. These implementing measures are of fundamental importance to the new regime, as they set out how MAR's enlarged scope is to be implemented in practice by market participants, trading platforms, investors, issuers and persons related to financial markets. In developing these regulatory options ESMA, where similar requirements already exist under the current Market Abuse Directive (MAD), has taken into consideration the existing MAD Level 2 texts and ESMA/CESR guidelines to set out the DP positions in light of the extended scope of MAR. This Discussion Paper is based on the version of the MAR Level 1 text agreed by the European Parliament, the Council and the European Commission on 24 June 2013. The closing date for responses is Monday 27 January 2014. MAR Policy Areas The DP covers ten sections of MAR where ESMA is expected to have to provide input, these include: •	conditions to be met by buyback programmes and stabilization measures to benefit from the exemption from market abuse prohibitions; •	arrangement and procedures required for market soundings, from the perspective of both the sounding and the sounded market participants; •	indicators and signals of market manipulation; •	criteria to establish Accepted Market Practices; •	arrangement, systems and procedures to put in place for the purpose of suspicious transactions and order reporting as well as its content and format; •	issues relating to public disclosure of inside information and the conditions for delay; •	format for insider lists; •	issues concerning the reporting and public disclosure of managers' transactions; •	arrangements for fair presentation and disclosure of conflicts of interests by producers and disseminators of investment recommendations; •	reporting of violations and related procedures. Next steps ESMA will consider the feedback it receives to this consultation in Q1 2014 and incorporate it in to its full consultation papers on both its draft Technical Standards and Technical Advice to the Commission. The dates for these consultations are will depend on the publication of the final version of MAR. Notes for editors 1.	2013/1649 Discussion Paper - ESMA's policy orientations on possible implementing measures under the Market Abuse Regulation 2.	Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on insider dealing and market manipulation (market abuse) (MAR) 3.	ESMA is an independent EU Authority that was established on 1 January 2011 and works closely with the other European Supervisory Authorities responsible for banking (EBA), and insurance and occupational pensions (EIOPA), and the European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB). 4.	ESMA's mission is to enhance the protection of investors and promote stable and well-functioning financial markets in the European Union (EU). As an independent institution, ESMA achieves this aim by building a single rule book for EU financial markets and ensuring its consistent application across the EU. ESMA contributes to the regulation of financial services firms with a pan-European reach, either through direct supervision or through the active co-ordination of national supervisory activity. Press Release 2013/1650 Discussion Paper 2013/1649
12/11/2013 2013/1645 ESMA clarifies shareholder cooperation in takeover situations Corporate Disclosure, Corporate Governance, Press Releases Press Release PDF
86.55 KB ESMA clarifies shareholder cooperation in takeover situations The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published a statement on practices governed by the Takeover Bid Directive (TBD), focused on shareholder cooperation issues relating to acting in concert and the appointment of board members. The statement contains a White List of activities that shareholders can cooperate on without the presumption of acting in concert. It also contains information on how shareholders may cooperate in order to secure board member appointments by setting out factors that national authorities may take into account when considering whether shareholders are acting in concert. The statement is in response to a request by the European Commission for clarity on these issues, following its 2012 report on the application of the TBD. It is based on information collected about the TBD's application and common practices across the European Economic Area (EEA). The statement was prepared by the Takeover Bids Network, a permanent working group, under ESMA's auspices, that promotes the exchange of information on practices and application of the TBD across EEA. Steven Maijoor, ESMA Chair, said: "Today's statement means that shareholders can now be confident that they can expect authorities to take a consistent approach across the EEA to their cooperative activities. This consistency should in turn provide the reassurance needed by shareholders for the effective, sustainable engagement that is one of the cornerstones of listed companies' corporate governance model allowing them to hold their boards to account. "ESMA believes that ensuring a consistent and convergent supervisory approach to this issue will be instrumental in affording equality of treatment to shareholders and investors across the EEA." National competent authorities will have regard to the White List when determining whether shareholders are persons acting in concert under national takeover rules, but will also take into account all other relevant factors in making their decisions. Shareholder cooperation and acting in concert - The White List When shareholders cooperate to engage in any of the activities listed below, that cooperation will not, in and of itself, lead to a conclusion that the shareholders are acting in concert: 1.	entering into discussions with each other about possible matters to be raised with the company's board; 2.	making representations to the company's board about company policies, practices or particular actions that the company might consider taking; 3.	other than in relation to the appointment of board members, exercising shareholders' statutory rights; 4.	other than in relation to a resolution for the appointment of board members and insofar as such a resolution is provided for under national company law, agreeing to vote the same way on a particular resolution put to a general meeting. If shareholders cooperate in an activity not included on the White List, this will also not result in an automatic assumption that they are acting in concert. Each case will be determined on its own particular facts. Cooperation in relation to the appointment of members of the board of a company The White List does not include any activity relating to cooperation on board appointments, due to differences in Member State approaches towards determining whether shareholders who cooperate in relation to board appointments are acting in concert. However, shareholders may wish to cooperate in order to secure board members' appointment in a company in which they have invested. This cooperation might take the form of: 1.	entering into an agreement or arrangement (informal or formal) to exercise their votes in the same way in order to support the appointment of one or more board members; 2.	tabling a resolution to remove one or more board members and replace them with one or more new board members; or 3.	tabling a resolution to appoint one or more additional board members. The statement therefore indicates which factors may be considered when assessing whether such cooperation is indeed an act of acting in concert. ESMA will keep the public statement under review in order to ensure that it continues to reflect accurately the practices and application of the TBD in the Member States. 2013/1642 Public Statement - Information on shareholder cooperation and acting in concert under the Takeover Bids Directive. 2013/1643 Cover Note to the Public Statement
13/02/2014 2014/174 ESMA consults on Guidelines for issuers performance measures Corporate Disclosure, Press Releases Press Release PDF
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has launched a consultation on Guidelines on Alternative Performance Measures (APMs). The aim of the guidelines is to encourage European issuers to publish transparent, unbiased and comparable information on their financial performance in order to provide users with a better understanding of their performance. Some examples of APMs include EBIT (Earnings Before Interest & Tax), EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortisation), free cash flow, underlying profit or net-debt. The Consultation Paper follows on from ESMA's decision to review and replace the 2005 CESR Recommendation on APMs with Guidelines under Article 16 of the ESMA Regulation to tackle concerns about APMs used by issuers. Those relate mainly to APMs being used in such a manner as to present a confusing or optimistic picture of their performance by removing certain negative aspects, or even where this is not the case, APMs can be misleading if they are inconsistently calculated or presented. The proposed guidelines set out the principles that issuers should follow when presenting APMs, and are based on the requirements applicable to financial statements, as required by the IAS Regulation, mainly referring to their labelling, calculation, presentation and comparability.Steven Maijoor, ESMA Chair, said: "The proposed guidelines aim to improve the transparency and comparability of financial information published by issuers. APMs presented in an appropriate way may reduce information asymmetry among the users of financial statements."These guidelines will ensure that APMs are used and presented in a coherent fashion across the EU, which will in turn contribute to restoring confidence in the accuracy and usefulness of financial information and improve investor protection." The proposed guidelines would apply to issuers with securities traded on regulated markets and all competent authorities and other bodies in the EU that undertake enforcement activities under the Transparency Directive. The proposed guidelines are aligned with other regulations and guidance issued by securities regulators in the United States, Australia and Canada on this matter. The closing date for responses to this consultation is 14 May 2014 and ESMA expects to publish the final guidelines in the fourth quarter of 2014.