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Anne Plested

Anne Plested Regulation at ION Markets

Change is the only constant

The unbundling of payment for research is a top concern for the industry. There seems to be general acceptance that, one way or another, Europe is set on the soft dollar research market becoming a hard dollar one by January 2017. Despite calls for more clarity and the recent publication of the FCA discussion paper on the regime, opinion remains d...

/regulation

Anne Plested

Anne Plested Regulation at ION Markets

Stuck between a rock and a hard place

First proposed way back in 2011, work has been ongoing to narrow down the details of a common financial transaction tax (FTT) to be introduced across Europe. Back in May this year, all but one of the 11 member states keen to push ahead had agreed that by the end of 2014 it should all be worked out and the new tax phased in by the end of 2015. But ...

/regulation

Anne Plested

Anne Plested Regulation at ION Markets

Turning down the heat on dealing commission

As the FT reported earlier this week, ESMA is set to step back from imposing a much contested overhaul of dealing commission. The scrutiny of commissions has been a major concern for the buy-side, in particular ESMA’s proposals to classify all but the most generally available investment research as a non-monetary benefit. This effectively implies ...

/regulation

Anne Plested

Anne Plested Regulation at ION Markets

Algorithmes de type francais

Just as we’re all getting used to the idea of having to flag algos on an EU-wide basis under MiFID II by 2017, the French regulator recently published further guidance under the French banking bill that came into force in July last year. Amongst other things the French bill targets algorithmic trading/HFT and this recent notice calls for French en...

/regulation

Anne Plested

Anne Plested Regulation at ION Markets

El manana is here

Last week I was in the beautiful city of Madrid, where besides analysing the impact of upcoming MiFID II regulation, I’ve been catching up on the Spanish Market Reforms. The upcoming changes, aka La Reforma, promise to align the Spanish market with European peers and improve competitiveness. Spain’s clearing, settlement and registry system overhau...

/regulation

Anne Plested

Anne Plested Regulation at ION Markets

Hang on a second!

MiFID II introduces the requirement to synchronise the business clocks of trading venues and their customers, standardising the recorded time on post-trade data, transaction reporting and, most importantly, order event auditing. Regulators argue that in the event of unusual market activity they will be able to pinpoint the exact moment things turn...

/regulation

Anne Plested

Anne Plested Regulation at ION Markets

EU FTT, next attempt

At a meeting of EU finance ministers yesterday the discussion turned to the introduction of the financial transaction tax (FTT) under the enhanced co-operation procedure. While still lacking even the most basic facts, a revised implementation timeline is emerging along the lines of a gradual introduction of the tax, with a first phase in place by...

/regulation

Anne Plested

Anne Plested Regulation at ION Markets

Any port in a storm?

With the European Parliament’s formal adoption of MiFID II in yesterday’s plenary session, the next fundamental industry overhaul is on the horizon. Away from all the noise around HFT, I’ve been looking at the new trading obligation for investment firms that requires them to undertake all trades in shares on a regulated market or MTF, or as a sys...

/regulation

Anne Plested

Anne Plested Regulation at ION Markets

A consolidation of data?

So what does MiFID II finally say about the consolidated tape? If you remember the story so far, a number of Consolidated Tape Providers, or CTPs – each authorised to operate the data reporting services – are supposed to compete to provide said tape. And if you ever wondered what the collective noun for a group of CTPs is, it appears to be ‘an aut...

/regulation

Anne Plested

Anne Plested Regulation at ION Markets

MiFID II under starter's orders

So, the much-anticipated trilogue meeting finally took place yesterday. With negotiators for Parliament and the Council of Ministers under heavy pressure to resolve issues and avoid a threatened return to the drawing board, ECON’s press release, published late last night, announced that informal agreement has been reached on MiFID II/MiFIR. Hurrah...

/regulation

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