Forward guidance, i.e. communication by a central bank about the likely future path of interest rates, usually reduces uncertainty. But it matters how this is done in practice, because forward guidance with a short time horizon can raise uncertainty. This occurs if the forward guidance impairs the aggregation of private information in financial markets, thus making market prices less informative. Central banks often make statements about the likely future path of interest rates by providing so-called forward guidance. Forward guidance is especially used if the central bank can no longer cut policy rates because they are already as low as possible (i.e. they have reached their lower bound). Continue reading…

The Commission is presenting a Communication summarising a set of reports relating to the implementation of the Union’s legal anti-money laundering/ counter terrorism financing framework. The findings aim to point to where implementation can be improved and to foster new discussions with relevant stakeholders to further improve the EU’s work in this field.

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The Commission is presenting a Communication summarising a set of reports relating to the implementation of the Union’s legal anti-money laundering/ counter terrorism financing framework. The findings aim to point to where implementation can be improved and to foster new discussions with relevant stakeholders to further improve the EU’s work in this field.

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The General Data Protection Regulation (hereafter ‘the Regulation’) applies across the European Union since over one year. It is at the centre of a coherent and modernised EU data protection landscape that also includes the Data Protection Law Enforcement Directive and the Data Protection Regulation for EU institutions and bodies. This framework is to be completed by the e-Privacy Regulation which is currently in the legislative process.

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The European Banking Authority (EBA) published the findings of its analysis on the regulatory framework applicable to FinTech firms when accessing the market. The Report illustrates the developments on the regulatory perimeter across the EU, the regulatory status of FinTech firms, and the approaches followed by competent authorities when granting authorisation for banking and payment services.
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The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the EU’s securities markets’ regulator, has published a statement addressed to providers marketing, distributing or selling contracts for differences (CFDs) to retail clients. The statement is in response to various practices and situations observed in the market, which raise concerns of non-compliance with the legal requirements applicable when providing services to retail clients.

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The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has updated its public register with the latest set of double volume cap (DVC) data under the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II). The updates include DVC data and calculations for the period 1 June 2018 to 31 May 2019 as well as updates to already published DVC periods.
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The Board of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) approved the establishment of a BIS Innovation Hub to foster international collaboration on innovative financial technology within the central banking community complementing the already well established cooperation within the existing committees. The role of the Hub will be to identify and develop in-depth insights into critical trends in technology affecting central banking; develop public goods in the technology space geared towards improving the functioning of the global financial system; and serve as a focal point for a network of central bank experts on innovation.

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The Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) recently announced that they will collaborate more closely. This should better protect and improve the integrity and stability of the financial system in both countries. The agreement between the British and Dutch regulators was signed last Monday, 3 June. Since the United Kingdom announced its intention to leave the EU, several financial companies that are currently active in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands have applied for a permit to work in both countries. Close cooperation and exchange of information between the FCA and AFM is therefore important for the development of international financial markets and for effective supervision of both companies and capital markets.
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The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has further considered the impact of the United Kingdom (UK) leaving the European Union (EU) without a withdrawal agreement (no-deal Brexit) on the trading obligation for shares (STO) under Article 23 of MiFIR and in the absence of an equivalence decision in respect of the UK by the European Commission (EC).

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