ESMA amends guidelines on the application of C6 and C7 under MiFID II

On 21 December 2018, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published amended guidelines on the application of C6 and C7 of Annex 1 of MiFID II. The amended guidelines, which are an update to the guidelines originally adopted under MiFID I, will be adapted to the new MiFID II regulatory framework without any change to the substance.

ESMA originally adopted a set of guidelines in October 2015 in order to ensure a common, uniform and consistent application of MiFID I in relation to commodity derivatives defined in the C6 and C7 sections of the MiFID Annex. The application start date of MiFID II and its supplementing regulation means that these guidelines formally require updating while their substance is maintained.

Next Steps

Following the approval of the amended version of the guidelines, they will be sent for translation at the beginning of 2019. Within two months of the date of publication of the guidelines on ESMA’s website in all EU official languages, competent authorities to which these guidelines apply must notify ESMA whether they intend to comply or not with the guidelines.