On Monday 23 October, Verena Ross, Chair of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), gave an update to the members of the European Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON) on the supervisory authority’s current and future priorities. While work remains to be done on the implementation of certain texts, the emphasis will be on the retail investment strategy, which must contribute to the completion of the capital markets union.
“It is essential that we continue to make progress and step up our efforts to achieve a true capital markets union. Firstly, because we need to be able to raise funds to finance our businesses and our transition, and to improve conditions for investors and consumers. We also need to make it more attractive for companies to enter the markets”, she declared.
To this end, the Chair of ESMA insisted: - on the need to implement the European single access point (‘ESAP’) (see EUROPE 13186/27), which should facilitate access to information on companies and financial products; - on the European regulation on crypto-asset markets (‘MiCA’). ESMA sent a letter to Member States on 17 October calling on them to prepare for the implementation of the text (see EUROPE 13274/31).
ESMA will also continue its work on the sustainability requirements of the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID). A joint action will be launched in 2024 on this subject (see EUROPE 13263/30).
Ms Ross also returned to the Commission’s legislative proposal on retail investment strategy (see EUROPE 13264/22). “The Commission’s proposal was balanced. The question of return on investment is well integrated”, she commented.
Questioned by German MEP René Repasi (S&D), Verena Ross also felt that the Commission had played it safe by going back on its initial idea of a total ban on commissions paid to brokers and other intermediaries, opting instead for a partial ban.
“The Commission had envisaged a total ban, but finally opted for a partial ban. Experiences vary widely from one Member State to another. In the Netherlands, where the ban is total, feedback has been very positive, but the situation varies from country to country. A total ban would go too far and would be too difficult to achieve within the EU”, she concluded. (Original version in French by Thomas Mangin)