Directive 2004/39/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (repealed)Show full title

CHAPTER I U.K. CONDITIONS AND PROCEDURES FOR AUTHORISATION

Article 5 U.K. Requirement for authorisation

1. Each Member State shall require that the performance of investment services or activities as a regular occupation or business on a professional basis be subject to prior authorisation in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter. Such authorisation shall be granted by the home Member State competent authority designated in accordance with Article 48.

2. By way of derogation from paragraph 1, Member States shall allow any market operator to operate an MTF, subject to the prior verification of their compliance with the provisions of this Chapter, excluding Articles 11 and 15.

[F1 3. Member States shall register all investment firms. The register shall be publicly accessible and shall contain information on the services or activities for which the investment firm is authorised. It shall be updated on a regular basis. Every authorisation shall be notified to the European Supervisory Authority (European Securities and Markets Authority) (hereinafter ‘ESMA’), established by Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council (1) .

ESMA shall establish a list of all investment firms in the Union. The list shall contain information on the services or activities for which the investment firm is authorised and it shall be updated on a regular basis. ESMA shall publish and keep up-to-date that list on its website.

Where a competent authority has withdrawn an authorisation in accordance with Article 8(b) to (d), that withdrawal shall be published on the list for a period of 5 years.]

4. Each Member State shall require that:

• any investment firm which is a legal person have its head office in the same Member State as its registered office,

• any investment firm which is not a legal person or any investment firm which is a legal person but under its national law has no registered office have its head office in the Member State in which it actually carries on its business.

5. In the case of investment firms which provide only investment advice or the service of reception and transmission of orders under the conditions established in Article 3, Member States may allow the competent authority to delegate administrative, preparatory or ancillary tasks related to the granting of an authorisation, in accordance with the conditions laid down in Article 48(2).

Textual Amendments

F1 Substituted by Directive 2010/78/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 amending Directives 98/26/EC, 2002/87/EC, 2003/6/EC, 2003/41/EC, 2003/71/EC, 2004/39/EC, 2004/109/EC, 2005/60/EC, 2006/48/EC, 2006/49/EC and 2009/65/EC in respect of the powers of the European Supervisory Authority (European Banking Authority), the European Supervisory Authority (European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority) and the European Supervisory Authority (European Securities and Markets Authority) (Text with EEA relevance).

Article 6 U.K. Scope of authorisation

1. The home Member State shall ensure that the authorisation specifies the investment services or activities which the investment firm is authorised to provide. The authorisation may cover one or more of the ancillary services set out in Section B of Annex I. Authorisation shall in no case be granted solely for the provision of ancillary services.

2. An investment firm seeking authorisation to extend its business to additional investment services or activities or ancillary services not foreseen at the time of initial authorisation shall submit a request for extension of its authorisation.

3. The authorisation shall be valid for the entire Community and shall allow an investment firm to provide the services or perform the activities, for which it has been authorised, throughout the Community, either through the establishment of a branch or the free provision of services.

Article 7 U.K. Procedures for granting and refusing requests for authorisation

1. The competent authority shall not grant authorisation unless and until such time as it is fully satisfied that the applicant complies with all requirements under the provisions adopted pursuant to this Directive.

2. The investment firm shall provide all information, including a programme of operations setting out inter alia the types of business envisaged and the organisational structure, necessary to enable the competent authority to satisfy itself that the investment firm has established, at the time of initial authorisation, all the necessary arrangements to meet its obligations under the provisions of this Chapter.

3. An applicant shall be informed, within six months of the submission of a complete application, whether or not authorisation has been granted.

[F2 4. In order to ensure consistent harmonisation of this Article and of Article 9(2) to (4), Article 10(1) and (2), ESMA may develop draft regulatory technical standards to specify:

(a) the information to be provided to the competent authorities under Article 7(2) including the programme of operations;

(b) the requirements applicable to the management of investment firms under Article 9(4) and the information for the notifications under Article 9(2);

(c) the requirements applicable to shareholders and members with qualifying holdings, as well as obstacles which may prevent effective exercise of the supervisory functions of the competent authority, under Article 10(1) and (2).

Power is delegated to the Commission to adopt the regulatory technical standards referred to in the first subparagraph in accordance with Articles 10 to 14 of Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010.

In order to ensure uniform conditions of application of Article 7(2) and Article 9(2), ESMA may develop draft implementing technical standards to determine standard forms, templates and procedures for the notification or provision of information provided for in those Articles.

Power is conferred on the Commission to adopt the implementing technical standards referred to in the third subparagraph in accordance with Article 15 of Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010.]

Textual Amendments

F2 Inserted by Directive 2010/78/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 amending Directives 98/26/EC, 2002/87/EC, 2003/6/EC, 2003/41/EC, 2003/71/EC, 2004/39/EC, 2004/109/EC, 2005/60/EC, 2006/48/EC, 2006/49/EC and 2009/65/EC in respect of the powers of the European Supervisory Authority (European Banking Authority), the European Supervisory Authority (European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority) and the European Supervisory Authority (European Securities and Markets Authority) (Text with EEA relevance).

Article 8 U.K. Withdrawal of authorisations

The competent authority may withdraw the authorisation issued to an investment firm where such an investment firm:

(a)

does not make use of the authorisation within 12 months, expressly renounces the authorisation or has provided no investment services or performed no investment activity for the preceding six months, unless the Member State concerned has provided for authorisation to lapse in such cases;

(b)

has obtained the authorisation by making false statements or by any other irregular means;

(c)

no longer meets the conditions under which authorisation was granted, such as compliance with the conditions set out in Directive 93/6/EEC;

(d)

has seriously and systematically infringed the provisions adopted pursuant to this Directive governing the operating conditions for investment firms;

(e)

falls within any of the cases where national law, in respect of matters outside the scope of this Directive, provides for withdrawal.

[F2 Every withdrawal of authorisation shall be notified to ESMA.]

Textual Amendments

F2 Inserted by Directive 2010/78/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 amending Directives 98/26/EC, 2002/87/EC, 2003/6/EC, 2003/41/EC, 2003/71/EC, 2004/39/EC, 2004/109/EC, 2005/60/EC, 2006/48/EC, 2006/49/EC and 2009/65/EC in respect of the powers of the European Supervisory Authority (European Banking Authority), the European Supervisory Authority (European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority) and the European Supervisory Authority (European Securities and Markets Authority) (Text with EEA relevance).

Article 9 U.K. Persons who effectively direct the business

1. Member States shall require the persons who effectively direct the business of an investment firm to be of sufficiently good repute and sufficiently experienced as to ensure the sound and prudent management of the investment firm.

Where the market operator that seeks authorisation to operate an MTF and the persons that effectively direct the business of the MTF are the same as those that effectively direct the business of the regulated market, those persons are deemed to comply with the requirements laid down in the first subparagraph.

2. Member States shall require the investment firm to notify the competent authority of any changes to its management, along with all information needed to assess whether the new staff appointed to manage the firm are of sufficiently good repute and sufficiently experienced.

3. The competent authority shall refuse authorisation if it is not satisfied that the persons who will effectively direct the business of the investment firm are of sufficiently good repute or sufficiently experienced, or if there are objective and demonstrable grounds for believing that proposed changes to the management of the firm pose a threat to its sound and prudent management.

4. Member States shall require that the management of investment firms is undertaken by at least two persons meeting the requirements laid down in paragraph 1.

By way of derogation from the first subparagraph, Member States may grant authorisation to investment firms that are natural persons or to investment firms that are legal persons managed by a single natural person in accordance with their constitutive rules and national laws. Member States shall nevertheless require that alternative arrangements be in place which ensure the sound and prudent management of such investment firms.

Article 10 U.K. Shareholders and members with qualifying holdings

1. The competent authorities shall not authorise the performance of investment services or activities by an investment firm until they have been informed of the identities of the shareholders or members, whether direct or indirect, natural or legal persons, that have qualifying holdings and the amounts of those holdings.

The competent authorities shall refuse authorisation if, taking into account the need to ensure the sound and prudent management of an investment firm, they are not satisfied as to the suitability of the shareholders or members that have qualifying holdings.

Where close links exist between the investment firm and other natural or legal persons, the competent authority shall grant authorisation only if those links do not prevent the effective exercise of the supervisory functions of the competent authority.

2. The competent authority shall refuse authorisation if the laws, regulations or administrative provisions of a third country governing one or more natural or legal persons with which the undertaking has close links, or difficulties involved in their enforcement, prevent the effective exercise of its supervisory functions.

[F3 3. Member States shall require any natural or legal person or such persons acting in concert (hereinafter referred to as the proposed acquirer), who have taken a decision either to acquire, directly or indirectly, a qualifying holding in an investment firm or to further increase, directly or indirectly, such a qualifying holding in an investment firm as a result of which the proportion of the voting rights or of the capital held would reach or exceed 20 %, 30 % or 50 % or so that the investment firm would become its subsidiary (hereinafter referred to as the proposed acquisition), first to notify in writing the competent authorities of the investment firm in which they are seeking to acquire or increase a qualifying holding, indicating the size of the intended holding and relevant information, as referred to in Article 10b(4).

Member States shall require any natural or legal person who has taken a decision to dispose, directly or indirectly, of a qualifying holding in an investment firm first to notify in writing the competent authorities, indicating the size of the intended holding. Such a person shall likewise notify the competent authorities if he has taken a decision to reduce his qualifying holding so that the proportion of the voting rights or of the capital held would fall below 20 %, 30 % or 50 % or so that the investment firm would cease to be his subsidiary.

Member States need not apply the 30 % threshold where, in accordance with Article 9(3)(a) of Directive 2004/109/EC, they apply a threshold of one-third.

In determining whether the criteria for a qualifying holding referred to in this Article are fulfilled, Member States shall not take into account voting rights or shares which investment firms or credit institutions may hold as a result of providing the underwriting of financial instruments and/or placing of financial instruments on a firm commitment basis included under point 6 of Section A of Annex I, provided that those rights are, on the one hand, not exercised or otherwise used to intervene in the management of the issuer and, on the other, disposed of within one year of acquisition.

4. The relevant competent authorities shall work in full consultation with each other when carrying out the assessment provided for in Article 10b(1) (hereinafter referred to as the assessment) if the proposed acquirer is one of the following:

(a) a credit institution, assurance undertaking, insurance undertaking, reinsurance undertaking, investment firm or UCITS management company authorised in another Member State or in a sector other than that in which the acquisition is proposed;

(b) the parent undertaking of a credit institution, assurance undertaking, insurance undertaking, reinsurance undertaking, investment firm or UCITS management company authorised in another Member State or in a sector other than that in which the acquisition is proposed; or

(c) a natural or legal person controlling a credit institution, assurance undertaking, insurance undertaking, reinsurance undertaking, investment firm or UCITS management company authorised in another Member State or in a sector other than that in which the acquisition is proposed.

The competent authorities shall, without undue delay, provide each other with any information which is essential or relevant for the assessment. In this regard, the competent authorities shall communicate to each other upon request all relevant information and shall communicate on their own initiative all essential information. A decision by the competent authority that has authorised the investment firm in which the acquisition is proposed shall indicate any views or reservations expressed by the competent authority responsible for the proposed acquirer.]

5. Member States shall require that, if an investment firm becomes aware of any acquisitions or disposals of holdings in its capital that cause holdings to exceed or fall below any of the thresholds referred to in the first subparagraph of paragraph 3, that investment firm is to inform the competent authority without delay.

At least once a year, investment firms shall also inform the competent authority of the names of shareholders and members possessing qualifying holdings and the sizes of such holdings as shown, for example, by the information received at annual general meetings of shareholders and members or as a result of compliance with the regulations applicable to companies whose transferable securities are admitted to trading on a regulated market.

6. Member States shall require that, where the influence exercised by the persons referred to in the first subparagraph of paragraph 1 is likely to be prejudicial to the sound and prudent management of an investment firm, the competent authority take appropriate measures to put an end to that situation.

Such measures may consist in applications for judicial orders and/or the imposition of sanctions against directors and those responsible for management, or suspension of the exercise of the voting rights attaching to the shares held by the shareholders or members in question.

Similar measures shall be taken in respect of persons who fail to comply with the obligation to provide prior information in relation to the acquisition or increase of a qualifying holding. If a holding is acquired despite the opposition of the competent authorities, the Member States shall, regardless of any other sanctions to be adopted, provide either for exercise of the corresponding voting rights to be suspended, for the nullity of the votes cast or for the possibility of their annulment.

Textual Amendments

F3 Substituted by Directive 2007/44/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 September 2007 amending Council Directive 92/49/EEC and Directives 2002/83/EC, 2004/39/EC, 2005/68/EC and 2006/48/EC as regards procedural rules and evaluation criteria for the prudential assessment of acquisitions and increase of holdings in the financial sector (Text with EEA relevance).

[F4 Article 10a U.K. Assessment period

1. The competent authorities shall, promptly and in any event within two working days following receipt of the notification required under the first subparagraph of Article 10(3), as well as following the possible subsequent receipt of the information referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article, acknowledge receipt thereof in writing to the proposed acquirer.

The competent authorities shall have a maximum of sixty working days as from the date of the written acknowledgement of receipt of the notification and all documents required by the Member State to be attached to the notification on the basis of the list referred to in Article 10b(4) (hereinafter referred to as the assessment period), to carry out the assessment.

The competent authorities shall inform the proposed acquirer of the date of the expiry of the assessment period at the time of acknowledging receipt.

2. The competent authorities may, during the assessment period, if necessary, and no later than on the 50th working day of the assessment period, request any further information that is necessary to complete the assessment. Such request shall be made in writing and shall specify the additional information needed.

For the period between the date of request for information by the competent authorities and the receipt of a response thereto by the proposed acquirer, the assessment period shall be interrupted. The interruption shall not exceed 20 working days. Any further requests by the competent authorities for completion or clarification of the information shall be at their discretion but may not result in an interruption of the assessment period.

3. The competent authorities may extend the interruption referred to in the second subparagraph of paragraph 2 up to 30 working days if the proposed acquirer is:

(a) situated or regulated outside the Community; or

(b) a natural or legal person not subject to supervision under this Directive or Directives 85/611/EEC, 92/49/EEC (2) , 2002/83/EC, 2005/68/EC (3) or 2006/48/EC (4) .

4. If the competent authorities, upon completion of the assessment, decide to oppose the proposed acquisition, they shall, within two working days, and not exceeding the assessment period, inform the proposed acquirer in writing and provide the reasons for that decision. Subject to national law, an appropriate statement of the reasons for the decision may be made accessible to the public at the request of the proposed acquirer. This shall not prevent a Member State from allowing the competent authority to make such disclosure in the absence of a request by the proposed acquirer.

5. If the competent authorities do not oppose the proposed acquisition within the assessment period in writing, it shall be deemed to be approved.

6. The competent authorities may fix a maximum period for concluding the proposed acquisition and extend it where appropriate.

7. Member States may not impose requirements for the notification to and approval by the competent authorities of direct or indirect acquisitions of voting rights or capital that are more stringent than those set out in this Directive.

[F2 [X1 8. In order to ensure consistent harmonisation of this Article, ESMA shall develop draft regulatory technical standards to establish an exhaustive list of information, referred to in Article 10b (4) to be included by proposed acquirers in their notification, without prejudice to paragraph 2.]

ESMA shall submit those draft regulatory technical standards to the Commission by 1 January 2014 .

Power is delegated to the Commission to adopt the regulatory technical standards referred to in the first subparagraph in accordance with Articles 10 to 14 of Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010.

In order to ensure uniform conditions of application of Articles 10, 10a and 10b, ESMA shall develop draft implementing technical standards to determine standard forms, templates and procedures for the modalities of the consultation process between the relevant competent authorities as referred to in Article 10(4).

ESMA shall submit those draft implementing technical standards to the Commission by 1 January 2014 .

Power is conferred on the Commission to adopt the implementing technical standards referred to in the fourth subparagraph in accordance with Article 15 of Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010.]

Editorial Information

X1 Substituted by Corrigendum to Directive 2010/78/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 amending Directives 98/26/EC, 2002/87/EC, 2003/6/EC, 2003/41/EC, 2003/71/EC, 2004/39/EC, 2004/109/EC, 2005/60/EC, 2006/48/EC, 2006/49/EC and 2009/65/EC in respect of the powers of the European Supervisory Authority (European Banking Authority), the European Supervisory Authority (European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority) and the European Supervisory Authority (European Securities and Markets Authority) (Official Journal of the European Union L 331 of 15 December 2010).

Textual Amendments

F2 Inserted by Directive 2010/78/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 amending Directives 98/26/EC, 2002/87/EC, 2003/6/EC, 2003/41/EC, 2003/71/EC, 2004/39/EC, 2004/109/EC, 2005/60/EC, 2006/48/EC, 2006/49/EC and 2009/65/EC in respect of the powers of the European Supervisory Authority (European Banking Authority), the European Supervisory Authority (European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority) and the European Supervisory Authority (European Securities and Markets Authority) (Text with EEA relevance).

F4 Inserted by Directive 2007/44/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 September 2007 amending Council Directive 92/49/EEC and Directives 2002/83/EC, 2004/39/EC, 2005/68/EC and 2006/48/EC as regards procedural rules and evaluation criteria for the prudential assessment of acquisitions and increase of holdings in the financial sector (Text with EEA relevance).

Article 10b U.K. Assessment

1. In assessing the notification provided for in Article 10(3) and the information referred to in Article 10a(2), the competent authorities shall, in order to ensure the sound and prudent management of the investment firm in which an acquisition is proposed, and having regard to the likely influence of the proposed acquirer on the investment firm, appraise the suitability of the proposed acquirer and the financial soundness of the proposed acquisition against all of the following criteria:

(a) the reputation of the proposed acquirer;

(b) the reputation and experience of any person who will direct the business of the investment firm as a result of the proposed acquisition;

(c) the financial soundness of the proposed acquirer, in particular in relation to the type of business pursued and envisaged in the investment firm in which the acquisition is proposed;

(d) whether the investment firm will be able to comply and continue to comply with the prudential requirements based on this Directive and, where applicable, other Directives, notably, Directives 2002/87/EC (5) and 2006/49/EC (6) , in particular, whether the group of which it will become a part has a structure that makes it possible to exercise effective supervision, effectively exchange information among the competent authorities and determine the allocation of responsibilities among the competent authorities;

(e) whether there are reasonable grounds to suspect that, in connection with the proposed acquisition, money laundering or terrorist financing within the meaning of Article 1 of Directive 2005/60/EC (7) is being or has been committed or attempted, or that the proposed acquisition could increase the risk thereof.

In order to take account of future developments and to ensure the uniform application of this Directive, the Commission, acting in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 64(2), may adopt implementing measures which adjust the criteria set out in the first subparagraph of this paragraph.

2. The competent authorities may oppose the proposed acquisition only if there are reasonable grounds for doing so on the basis of the criteria set out in paragraph 1 or if the information provided by the proposed acquirer is incomplete.

3. Member States shall neither impose any prior conditions in respect of the level of holding that must be acquired nor allow their competent authorities to examine the proposed acquisition in terms of the economic needs of the market.

4. Member States shall make publicly available a list specifying the information that is necessary to carry out the assessment and that must be provided to the competent authorities at the time of notification referred to in Article 10(3). The information required shall be proportionate and adapted to the nature of the proposed acquirer and the proposed acquisition. Member States shall not require information that is not relevant for a prudential assessment.

5. Notwithstanding Article 10a(1), (2) and (3), where two or more proposals to acquire or increase qualifying holdings in the same investment firm have been notified to the competent authority, the latter shall treat the proposed acquirers in a non-discriminatory manner.]

Textual Amendments

F4 Inserted by Directive 2007/44/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 September 2007 amending Council Directive 92/49/EEC and Directives 2002/83/EC, 2004/39/EC, 2005/68/EC and 2006/48/EC as regards procedural rules and evaluation criteria for the prudential assessment of acquisitions and increase of holdings in the financial sector (Text with EEA relevance).

Article 11 U.K. Membership of an authorised Investor Compensation Scheme

The competent authority shall verify that any entity seeking authorisation as an investment firm meets its obligations under Directive 97/9/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 3 March 1997 on investor-compensation schemes(8) at the time of authorisation.

Article 12 U.K. Initial capital endowment

Member States shall ensure that the competent authorities do not grant authorisation unless the investment firm has sufficient initial capital in accordance with the requirements of Directive 93/6/EEC having regard to the nature of the investment service or activity in question.

Pending the revision of Directive 93/6/EEC, the investment firms provided for in Article 67 shall be subject to the capital requirements laid down in that Article.

Article 13 U.K. Organisational requirements

1. The home Member State shall require that investment firms comply with the organisational requirements set out in paragraphs 2 to 8.

2. An investment firm shall establish adequate policies and procedures sufficient to ensure compliance of the firm including its managers, employees and tied agents with its obligations under the provisions of this Directive as well as appropriate rules governing personal transactions by such persons.

3. An investment firm shall maintain and operate effective organisational and administrative arrangements with a view to taking all reasonable steps designed to prevent conflicts of interest as defined in Article 18 from adversely affecting the interests of its clients.

4. An investment firm shall take reasonable steps to ensure continuity and regularity in the performance of investment services and activities. To this end the investment firm shall employ appropriate and proportionate systems, resources and procedures.

5. An investment firm shall ensure, when relying on a third party for the performance of operational functions which are critical for the provision of continuous and satisfactory service to clients and the performance of investment activities on a continuous and satisfactory basis, that it takes reasonable steps to avoid undue additional operational risk. Outsourcing of important operational functions may not be undertaken in such a way as to impair materially the quality of its internal control and the ability of the supervisor to monitor the firm's compliance with all obligations.

An investment firm shall have sound administrative and accounting procedures, internal control mechanisms, effective procedures for risk assessment, and effective control and safeguard arrangements for information processing systems.

6. An investment firm shall arrange for records to be kept of all services and transactions undertaken by it which shall be sufficient to enable the competent authority to monitor compliance with the requirements under this Directive, and in particular to ascertain that the investment firm has complied with all obligations with respect to clients or potential clients.

7. An investment firm shall, when holding financial instruments belonging to clients, make adequate arrangements so as to safeguard clients' ownership rights, especially in the event of the investment firm's insolvency, and to prevent the use of a client's instruments on own account except with the client's express consent.

8. An investment firm shall, when holding funds belonging to clients, make adequate arrangements to safeguard the clients' rights and, except in the case of credit institutions, prevent the use of client funds for its own account.

9. In the case of branches of investment firms, the competent authority of the Member State in which the branch is located shall, without prejudice to the possibility of the competent authority of the home Member State of the investment firm to have direct access to those records, enforce the obligation laid down in paragraph 6 with regard to transactions undertaken by the branch.

10. In order to take account of technical developments on financial markets and to ensure the uniform application of paragraphs 2 to 9, the Commission shall adopt [F5 , in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 64(2),] implementing measures which specify the concrete organisational requirements to be imposed on investment firms performing different investment services and/or activities and ancillary services or combinations thereof. [F6 Those measures, designed to amend non-essential elements of this Directive by supplementing it, shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 64(2).]

Textual Amendments

F5 Deleted by Directive 2008/10/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 2008 amending Directive 2004/39/EC on markets in financial instruments, as regards the implementing powers conferred on the Commission.

F6 Inserted by Directive 2008/10/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 2008 amending Directive 2004/39/EC on markets in financial instruments, as regards the implementing powers conferred on the Commission.

Article 14 U.K. Trading process and finalisation of transactions in an MTF

1. Member States shall require that investment firms or market operators operating an MTF, in addition to meeting the requirements laid down in Article 13, establish transparent and non-discretionary rules and procedures for fair and orderly trading and establish objective criteria for the efficient execution of orders.

2. Member States shall require that investment firms or market operators operating an MTF establish transparent rules regarding the criteria for determining the financial instruments that can be traded under its systems.

Member States shall require that, where applicable, investment firms or market operators operating an MTF provide, or are satisfied that there is access to, sufficient publicly available information to enable its users to form an investment judgement, taking into account both the nature of the users and the types of instruments traded.

3. Member States shall ensure that Articles 19, 21 and 22 are not applicable to the transactions concluded under the rules governing an MTF between its members or participants or between the MTF and its members or participants in relation to the use of the MTF. However, the members of or participants in the MTF shall comply with the obligations provided for in Articles 19, 21 and 22 with respect to their clients when, acting on behalf of their clients, they execute their orders through the systems of an MTF.

4. Member States shall require that investment firms or market operators operating an MTF establish and maintain transparent rules, based on objective criteria, governing access to its facility. These rules shall comply with the conditions established in Article 42(3).

5. Member States shall require that investment firms or market operators operating an MTF clearly inform its users of their respective responsibilities for the settlement of the transactions executed in that facility. Member States shall require that investment firms or market operators operating an MTF have put in place the necessary arrangements to facilitate the efficient settlement of the transactions concluded under the systems of the MTF.

6. Where a transferable security, which has been admitted to trading on a regulated market, is also traded on an MTF without the consent of the issuer, the issuer shall not be subject to any obligation relating to initial, ongoing or ad hoc financial disclosure with regard to that MTF.

7. Member States shall require that any investment firm or market operator operating an MTF comply immediately with any instruction from its competent authority pursuant to Article 50(1) to suspend or remove a financial instrument from trading.

Article 15 U.K. Relations with third countries

[F1 1. Member States shall inform the Commission and ESMA of any general difficulties which their investment firms encounter in establishing themselves or providing investment services and/or performing investment activities in any third country.]

[F1 2. Whenever it appears to the Commission, on the basis of information submitted to it under paragraph 1, that a third country does not grant Union investment firms effective market access comparable to that granted by the Union to investment firms from that third country, the Commission, taking into account guidance issued by ESMA, shall submit proposals to the Council for an appropriate mandate for negotiation with a view to obtaining comparable competitive opportunities for Union investment firms. The Council shall act by qualified majority.

The European Parliament shall be immediately and fully informed at all stages of the procedure in accordance with Article 217 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).

ESMA shall assist the Commission for the purposes of this Article.]

3. Whenever it appears to the Commission, on the basis of information submitted to it under paragraph 1, that Community investment firms in a third country are not granted national treatment affording the same competitive opportunities as are available to domestic investment firms and that the conditions of effective market access are not fulfilled, the Commission may initiate negotiations in order to remedy the situation.

In the circumstances referred to in the first subparagraph, the Commission may decide, [F7 in accordance with the regulatory procedure referred to in Article 64(3),] at any time and in addition to the initiation of negotiations, that the competent authorities of the Member States must limit or suspend their decisions regarding requests pending or future requests for authorisation and the acquisition of holdings by direct or indirect parent undertakings governed by the law of the third country in question. Such limitations or suspensions may not be applied to the setting-up of subsidiaries by investment firms duly authorised in the Community or by their subsidiaries, or to the acquisition of holdings in Community investment firms by such firms or subsidiaries. The duration of such measures may not exceed three months.

Before the end of the three-month period referred to in the second subparagraph and in the light of the results of the negotiations, the Commission may decide, [F7 in accordance with the regulatory procedure referred to in Article 64(3),] to extend these measures.

4. Whenever it appears to the Commission that one of the situations referred to in paragraphs 2 and 3 obtains, the Member States shall inform it at its request:

(a) of any application for the authorisation of any firm which is the direct or indirect subsidiary of a parent undertaking governed by the law of the third country in question;

(b) whenever they are informed in accordance with Article 10(3) that such a parent undertaking proposes to acquire a holding in a Community investment firm, in consequence of which the latter would become its subsidiary.

That obligation to provide information shall lapse whenever agreement is reached with the third country concerned or when the measures referred to in the second and third subparagraphs of paragraph 3 cease to apply.

5. Measures taken under this Article shall comply with the Community's obligations under any international agreements, bilateral or multilateral, governing the taking-up or pursuit of the business of investment firms.

Textual Amendments

F1 Substituted by Directive 2010/78/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 amending Directives 98/26/EC, 2002/87/EC, 2003/6/EC, 2003/41/EC, 2003/71/EC, 2004/39/EC, 2004/109/EC, 2005/60/EC, 2006/48/EC, 2006/49/EC and 2009/65/EC in respect of the powers of the European Supervisory Authority (European Banking Authority), the European Supervisory Authority (European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority) and the European Supervisory Authority (European Securities and Markets Authority) (Text with EEA relevance).

F7 Substituted by Directive 2008/10/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 2008 amending Directive 2004/39/EC on markets in financial instruments, as regards the implementing powers conferred on the Commission.

(1)

[F1 OJ L 331, 15.12.2010, p. 84 .]

(2)

[F4 Council Directive 92/49/EEC of 18 June 1992 on the coordination of laws, regulations and administrative provisions relating to direct insurance other than life assurance (third non-life insurance Directive) ( OJ L 228, 11.8.1992, p. 1 ). Directive as last amended by Directive 2007/44/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council ( OJ L 247, 21.9.2007, p. 1 ).

(3)

Directive 2005/68/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 November 2005 on reinsurance ( OJ L 323, 9.12.2005, p. 1 ). Directive as amended by Directive 2007/44/EC.

(4)

Directive 2006/48/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 June 2006 relating to the taking up and pursuit of the business of credit institutions (recast) ( OJ L 177, 30.6.2006, p. 1 ). Directive as last amended by Directive 2007/44/EC.

(5)

Directive 2002/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2002 on the supplementary supervision of credit institutions, insurance undertakings and investment firms in a financial conglomerate ( OJ L 35, 11.2.2003, p. 1 ). Directive as amended by Directive 2005/1/EC ( OJ L 79, 24.3.2005, p. 9 ).

(6)

Directive 2006/49/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 June 2006 on the capital adequacy of investment firms and credit institutions (recast) ( OJ L 177, 30.6.2006, p. 201 ).

(7)

Directive 2005/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 October 2005 on the prevention of the use of financial system for the purpose of money laundering and terrorist financing ( OJ L 309, 25.11.2005, p. 15 ).]

(8)

OJ L 84, 26.3.1997, p. 22.

Textual Amendments

F1 Substituted by Directive 2010/78/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 amending Directives 98/26/EC, 2002/87/EC, 2003/6/EC, 2003/41/EC, 2003/71/EC, 2004/39/EC, 2004/109/EC, 2005/60/EC, 2006/48/EC, 2006/49/EC and 2009/65/EC in respect of the powers of the European Supervisory Authority (European Banking Authority), the European Supervisory Authority (European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority) and the European Supervisory Authority (European Securities and Markets Authority) (Text with EEA relevance).

F4 Inserted by Directive 2007/44/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 September 2007 amending Council Directive 92/49/EEC and Directives 2002/83/EC, 2004/39/EC, 2005/68/EC and 2006/48/EC as regards procedural rules and evaluation criteria for the prudential assessment of acquisitions and increase of holdings in the financial sector (Text with EEA relevance).