Delegated regulation 2016/908 - Supplement to Regulation 596/2014 laying down regulatory technical standards on the criteria, the procedure and the requirements for establishing an accepted market practice and the requirements for maintaining it, terminating it or modifying the conditions for its acceptance - Main contents

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 153/3

The specification of common criteria, procedures and requirements should contribute to the development of uniform arrangements in the sphere of accepted market practices (AMPs), improve the clarity of the legal regime under which these practices are permitted and promote fair and efficient conduct among market participants. It should further serve to reinforce the orderly functioning of the market and market integrity.

To ensure that AMPs do not undermine innovation and the continued dynamic development of financial markets, new or emerging market trends that could result in novel market practices should not automatically be assumed to be unacceptable by competent authorities. Rather, those competent authorities should assess whether such market practices comply with the criteria set out in this Regulation and in Regulation (EU) No 596/2014.

AMPs should be conducted in a manner that ensures market integrity and investor protection without creating risks for other market participants and other related markets. Consequently, due regard should be given to transparency and the conditions governing the market practices proposed for designation as AMPs. When assessing the level of transparency of market practices proposed as AMPs both to the public and to the competent authorities, competent authorities should consider the various stages of the performance of the potential AMPs. Consequently, it is also appropriate to lay down specific transparency requirements for those stages, namely before the AMP is performed by market participants, during its performance and when the market participants cease to perform the AMP.

Market practices that can be established by competent authorities as AMPs can be different in type and nature. When establishing a market practice as an AMP, a competent authority should assess the frequency of the disclosure required from all the persons who will perform it to ensure it is adapted and appropriate to the market practice under consideration. The frequency of disclosure should achieve a balance between the need to inform the public and to provide the competent authority with information for the on-going monitoring and the burden to periodically disclose information by those performing the AMP. Moreover, when assessing a market practice that may be performed outside a trading venue, competent authorities should consider whether the requirement for a substantial level of transparency to the market is met.

Competent authorities that have accepted a market practice should ensure it is monitored adequately with due care and attention. Therefore, persons performing the market practice should be required to keep sufficient records of all transactions and orders undertaken so as to enable competent authorities to fulfil their supervisory functions and to carry out the enforcement actions...