Brussels, 05/08/2004 (Agence Europe) - The European Central Bank (ECB) has taken position on the European Commission's draft framework directive in the field of "back-office" operations (see EUROPE of 29 April, p.11). In its communication, the Commission gave interested parties till 30 July to make their stances known concerning clearing and settlement allowing for the transfer of property and the payment of a share after agreement has been reached between the buyer and the seller.
The aim of the framework directive is to guarantee non-discriminatory access to markets by using the principle of mutual recognition as a basis. According to the Eurosystem, which groups the senior representatives of the ECB and the national central banks that have adopted single currency, a framework directive will contribute to eliminating obstacles identified in the reports by the Giovannini Group. The Eurosystem trusts that the directive will simply define key principles allowing a group of experts to propose measures for lifting these obstacles and for overcoming national market compartmentalisation. In its response to the Commission, the Eurosystem considers this role could be played by the European System of Central Banks (ESCB) and the Committee of European Securities Regulators (CESR), which contributed to developing standards in this field.