Implementing regulation 2018/292 - Implementing technical standards with regard to procedures and forms for exchange of information and assistance between competent authorities according to Regulation 596/2014 on market abuse - Main contents

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 55/34

In order to ensure that authorities designated as competent authorities under Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 are able to cooperate and exchange information in an efficient and timely manner and provide each other full mutual assistance for the purposes of that Regulation, it is appropriate to set out common procedures and forms to be used by competent authorities for exchange of information and assistance, including for the submission of requests for assistance, acknowledgments of receipts and replies to such requests.

The exchange of written information should assist a competent authority in fulfilling its duties. Oral communication may take place, where appropriate, including before a written request is sent, to provide information about an upcoming request for assistance and to discuss any issues that may impede the assistance being provided. In urgent cases, a request for assistance should also be permitted to be communicated orally, where the urgency is not due to late action by the requesting party.

Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 establishes that competent authorities are to exchange information and provide assistance. However, requests for assistance should, to the extent possible, include the taking of a statement or carrying out an on-site inspection or an investigation, only in cases where a simple request for exchange of information would not be sufficient. Prior to filing a request for assistance to a competent authority of another Member State, a competent authority is expected to have undertaken all actions reasonably practicable in its own jurisdiction, noting though it may not be reasonably feasible for this authority to have exhausted all the methods of enquiry prior to the request.

Unsolicited assistance should be provided in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 596/2014, including on a voluntary basis when the competent authority of a Member State considers that information in its possession may be of use for another competent authority.

A request for assistance pursuant to Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 should provide sufficient information about the subject matter of the request, including the reason for the request and its context, to enable the requested authority to process the request efficiently and expediently. Indicating the facts giving rise to the suspicion should not be considered as a precondition for a requesting authority to receive assistance where the requested information is necessary for the authority to fulfil its duties.

Beyond the use of forms for requesting and replying to a request for assistance, the procedures for cooperation should allow and facilitate the communication, consultation and interaction between the requesting authority and the requested authority, throughout the process, to ensure an efficient processing of a request for information or assistance. These procedures should also allow competent authorities to provide each other...