17 June 2013
EBA, ESMA and EIOPA published their 2012 Annual Reports online. The Reports are available at the following links:

• 2012 EBA Annual Report
• ESMA Annual Report for 2012
• EIOPA Annual Report 2012

Frankfurt, 12 June 2013
The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) published today its first half-year report for 2013 on the financial stability of the insurance and institutions for occupational retirement provision (IORPs) sectors in the European Economic Area (EEA).

11 June 2013
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) is seeking new members for the Securities and Markets Stakeholder Group (SMSG), as the current members’ term expires at the end of 2013. The SMSG’s aim is to facilitate ESMA’s consultation on its work with relevant securities markets stakeholders from around the European Union (EU).

11 June 2013
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published Guidelines on remuneration policies and practices which apply to relevant staff of investment firms, credit institutions and fund management companies when providing investment services, and to national securities regulators enforcing those rules. 

The Guidelines strengthen investor protection by improving the implementation of the conflicts of interest and conduct of business provisions set out in the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) in the area of remuneration. Improving remuneration arrangements will help to create the right incentives and to prevent mis-selling.

7 June 2013
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has formally approved the registration of Dagong Europe Credit Rating Srl (Dagong Europe), based in Italy, as a credit rating agency (CRA) under Article 16 of the CRA Regulation. The registration takes effect from 13 June 2013.

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) and the European Banking Authority (EBA) have published their final report setting out their Principles for Benchmark-Setting Processes in the EU.

30 May 2013
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has formally approved the registration of the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), based in the United Kingdom, as a credit rating agency (CRA) under Article 16 of the CRA Regulation. The registration takes effect from 3 June 2013.

30 May 2013
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has approved co-operation arrangements between EU securities regulators, with responsibility for the supervision of alternative investment funds (AIFs), including hedge funds, private equity and real estate funds, and 34 of their global counterparts. ESMA has negotiated the agreements on behalf of all 27 EU Member State securities regulators as well as the authorities from Croatia, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.

The European Banking Authority launches today a consultation paper on draft Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS) on criteria to identify categories of staff whose professional activities have a material impact on an institution’s risk profile. These material risk takers will be subject to specific provisions of the Capital Requirements Directive (CRD) related, in particular, to the payment of variable remuneration. The consultation runs until 21 August.

The EBA agreed today on recommendations to supervisors to conduct asset quality reviews on major EU banks. While banks’ capital positions were significantly strengthened under the EBA’s recapitalisation exercise, the objective of the asset quality exercises will be to review banks’ classifications and valuations of their assets so to help dispel concerns over the deterioration of asset quality due to macroeconomic conditions in Europe.

The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authorities (EIOPA) launches the Call for Expression of Interest regarding the setting up of EIOPA Stakeholder Groups, the Insurance and Reinsurance Stakeholder Group (IRSG) and the Occupational Pensions Stakeholder Group (OPSG), following the expiration of their mandates later this year.

News agency Bloomberg committed an act of prohibited market manipulation by publishing an erroneous headline ahead of the central bank’s interest rate decision last week – HFSA established in a resolution. It has therefore imposed a fine of HUF 10 million on the news service. Although the news was published due to a technical error, the supervisory authority believes that the news agency failed to apply control mechanisms to prevent false news being published.

Mr. Steven Maijoor, Chair of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), which operates with the involvement of national financial supervisory authorities, on the invitation of Dr. Károly Szász, President of HFSA, visited Hungary on 16-17 April, 2013.

15 April 2013
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published a peer review report examining whether EU securities supervisors correctly apply ESMA’s guidelines on money market funds (MMFs).  The review compared supervisory and enforcement practices for MMFs of 30 supervisory authorities across the European Economic Area (EEA). EMSA reviewed those 20 jurisdictions that had transposed the guidelines into their national rules. 

27 March 2013
The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) launched today a public consultation on Guidelines related to the preparation for Solvency II. The purpose of the Guidelines is to support both National Competent Authorities (NCA’s) and undertakings in their preparation for the Solvency II requirements.

20 March 2013
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has formally approved the certification in the European Union of Kroll Bond Rating Agency Inc. (KBRA) under Article 16 of the CRA Regulation. The certification takes effect from 20 March 2013.

18 March 2013, London
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published its second Annual Report on its supervision of credit rating agencies (CRAs) in the European Union.

The report summarises the supervisory work undertaken by ESMA, during 2012, in ensuring that CRAs complied with the CRA Regulation.  The report includes details on ESMA’s supervisory, registration, and policy work; and focuses on its investigation into bank rating methodologies and the follow up work to the March 2012 report on deficiencies in CRAs rating processes, governance and control mechanisms.

FRANKFURT, March 15, 2013 - The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) and the World Bank have signed an operational Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to cooperate on developing the insurance sector.

The Board of Supervisors of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) yesterday elected Gérard Rameix as a member of its Management Board, which is responsible for ensuring that the Authority carries out its mission and performs the tasks assigned to it under its founding Regulation.

Frankfurt, 4 March 2013 – The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) has published today an Opinion on Supervisory Response to a Prolonged Low Interest Rate Environment.

28 February 2013
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) and the European Banking Authority (EBA) have published a warning to retail investors about the dangers of investing in contracts for difference (CFDs).
The two authorities are concerned that during the current period of low investment returns, inexperienced retail investors across the EU are being tempted to invest in complex financial products, which they may not fully understand and which can end up costing them money they cannot afford to lose.

Budapest, 13 February 2013
The investigation carried out by Hungarian Financial Supervisory Authority (HFSA) to review the quoting procedures of the Budapest interbank offered rate (BUBOR) has revealed internal regulatory, risk management and control deficiencies. HFSA has notified the concerned banks in writing about its requirements relative to the appropriate methodology, as well as the development of the management and control systems.

Frankfurt, 22 February 2013 – The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) has published today its Report on Good Practices related to the provision of information for Defined Contribution (DC) schemes. The Report is part of EIOPA own-initiative work.  It is addressed to policymakers responsible for information disclosure to pension scheme members

19 February 2013

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published its Final Report on The Proxy Advisor Industry. The report contains an analysis of the responses received to its March 2012 consultation and sets out the next steps for ESMA and the industry.

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published today its first report on trends, risks and vulnerabilities in European Union (EU) securities markets and a risk dashboard for the 4th Quarter 2012.  The report looks at the performance of securities markets in 2012, assessing both trends and risks in order to develop a comprehensive picture of systemic and macro-prudential risks in the EU that can serve both national and EU bodies in their risk assessments.  By regularly looking into cross-border and cross-sector trends and risks both at the wholesale and retail level, ESMA’s report will contribute to promoting financial stability and enhancing consumer protection.

1 February 2013
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published its final Guidelines and a Feedback Statement on the Exemption for market making activities and primary market operations under the Short Selling Regulation.  The Guidelines are aimed at providing market participants and national supervisors with clarity on the criteria to be met to benefit from a market making exemption, and the conditions to be used in assessing the notifications.

In a resolution dated 25 January 2013, the HFSA revoked the foundation and operating licence of AIM Általános Biztosító Zrt. (AIM General Insurance Co. Ltd.) and ordered the institution’s final settlement (winding up procedure) effective 28 January 2013.

23 January 2013
The EBA adopted a formal Recommendation to ensure that major EU cross-border banks develop group recovery plans by the end of 2013. The plans shall be submitted to the respective competent authorities and discussed within colleges of supervisors. The aim of the Recommendation is to spur the development of recovery plans and to foster convergence on the highest standards across the Union.

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published its 2013 CRA Supervision and Policy Work Plan.
In the work plan, ESMA sets out the key elements of its supervisory programme for the 19-registered and 1 certified credit rating agencies (CRAs) in the European Union (EU).  The annual work plan is approved by ESMA’s Board of Supervisors, which is composed of the relevant authorities from the EU’s 27 Member States.

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has today published a review of 2011 IFRS financial statements related to impairment testing of goodwill - the value of intangible assets which has a quantifiable value - and other tangible assets.  The review, which looked into the accounting practices of a sample of 235 European issuers from 23 countries, found €800bn (€790bn in 2010) worth of goodwill balances in the 2011 financial statements of issuers, with 5% (c. €40bn) of that amount recognised as impairment losses in 2011.

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) and the European Banking Authority (EBA) have today published the results of their joint work on Euribor and propose principles for benchmark rate-setting processes. The publications include:

• A review of Euribor’s administration and management and clear recommendations to the Euribor-European Banking Federation (EEBF) to improve the governance and transparency of the rate-setting process;

• Formal EBA Recommendations to national authorities on the supervisory oversight of banks participating in the Euribor panel; and

• A joint ESMA-EBA consultation on Principles for Benchmark Setting Processes in the EU which establish a framework for the conduct of benchmark rate-setting and the activities of participants in the process.

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has launched a Consultation Paper on Guidelines and Recommendations on the scope of the CRA Regulation.  The draft Guidelines aim to provide clarification on certain aspects of the scope of the Credit Rating Agencies (CRA) Regulation to registered CRAs, other market participants operating on the perimeter of this sector and to national securities markets regulators.

Frankfurt, 20 December 2012 – The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) published today its Opinion on interim measures regarding Solvency II.

Frankfurt, 19 December 2012 – The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) will assess the impact of the Solvency II Long-Term Guarantees (LTG) package as requested by the Trilogue parties (the European Parliament, the Council of the EU and the European Commission).

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has issued a Public Statement on the Treatment of Forbearance Practices in IFRS Financial Statements of Financial Institutions.  The statement deals with the definition of forbearance practices, their impact on the impairment of financial assets and the specific disclosures relating to forbearance activities that listed financial institutions should include in their IFRS financial statements for the year ending 31 December 2012.

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has approved the co-operation arrangements between the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority FINMA and the EU securities regulators for the supervision of alternative investment funds, including hedge funds, private equity and real estate funds. ESMA has negotiated the agreement with FINMA on behalf of all 27 EU national competent authorities for securities markets regulation.

Leaders of authorities with responsibility for the regulation of the over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives markets in Australia, Brazil, the European Union, Hong Kong, Japan, Ontario, Quebec, Singapore, Switzerland and the United States,1 met on November 28, 2012 to discuss reform of the OTC derivatives market as agreed by the leaders at the G-20 Pittsburgh Summit in September 2009.

Frankfurt, 14 December 2012 – The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) published today its second half-year report for 2012 on the financial stability of the insurance and institutions for occupational retirement provision (IORPs) sectors in the European Economic Area (EEA).

The general objective of recommendations issued by the Hungarian Financial Supervisory Authority(hereinafter the Authority, English acronym: HFSA) is the improved predictability in the application of law and the protection of the interests of clients, who take part in the proceedings, in order to foster uniform application of legislation referred to the the competence of the Authority. The recommendations issued by the Authority set out principles over and above the provisions of law considered as a minimum requirement. When evaluating financial organisations and its stating findings or taking measures, the Authority considers not only conducts that deviate from the Recommendation, but also the implementation of, and compliance with, the principles set forth in the Recommendation.

Frankfurt, 4 December 2012 – The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) held today in Frankfurt its second Consumer Strategy Day, which attracted nearly 200 participants.
The purpose of the event was to debate important regulatory developments and consumer trends with stakeholders.

Before consumers enter into a loan, they need to understand its real cost and take the time to reflect, especially on the monthly repayment. The Consumer Credit Directive lists the information that need to be given in advertising of credits and as part of credit offers and provides for a 14 days reflexion time, during which the consumer may back out of the agreement without charge. Following a crackdown on websites offering consumer credits, more than 3 out of 4 sites checked a year ago now comply with EU law (compared with only 30% in September 2011). Further improvements should come as national authorities pursue their actions on outstanding cases. In this EU co-ordinated "Sweep" investigation, which took place in September 2011, national enforcement authorities checked 565 websites across the 27 Member States, Norway and Iceland. Of the 70% of sites flagged for further investigation at the time, 10% were finally deemed compliant and 35% were corrected after action by national authorities. The remaining websites either no longer exist or are subject to on-going administrative or court proceedings.

The European Banking Authority (EBA) published today its guidelines on the assessment of the suitability of members of the management body and key function holders. These Guidelines set out the process, criteria and minimum requirements for assessing the suitability of those persons and are ultimately aimed at ensuring robust governance arrangements and appropriate oversight.

The Regulation (EU) No 236/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 March on short selling and certain aspects of credit default swaps (the Regulation) was published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 24 March 2012 and is applicable from 1 November 2012.

More information is available on: https://www.kozzetetelek.hu/en/short_selling/short_selling_EN.html

Deadline of the 1st SSR notification day in Hungary: 6th November 2012, 15:30 CET.

27 October 2012

Hungarian Financial Supervisory Authority (HFSA)

The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) published today a Report on Industry Training Standards applied by national competent authorities. The Report is part of EIOPA’s activities in the area of consumer protection and is related to the task of developing training standards for the industry as required by the Regulation establishing EIOPA.

3 October 2012 - The European Banking Authority discloses today the final report on its EU-wide recapitalisation exercise and the data on all individual banks. Overall, the exercise led to an increase of banks’ capital positions of more than €200bn. 27 banks with an initial shortfall that submitted capital plans have strengthened their capital position by €116bn. Considering the still challenging market environment, the EBA’s Board of Supervisors underlined the need for banks to maintain their capital levels in view of the implementation of the new regulatory framework. In this respect, the EBA will adopt a new Recommendation on capital conservation once the final CRD IV/CRR text is agreed.

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has today published its technical standards on the Regulation on OTC derivatives, central counterparties and trade repositories (EMIR), which set out the specific details of how EMIR’s requirements are to be implemented. 

The European Banking Authority adopted today the final draft of the technical standards on capital requirements for Central Counterparties (CCP) under EMIR. The draft will now be sent to the European Commission for final adoption. The EBA also adopted an opinion to the EC on the same topic.

The main objective of the MoU is to ensure optimal cooperation in supervision, in particular for insurance groups with international activities in the European economic area (EEA) and Switzerland. The Memorandum creates a formal basis for cooperation in the following areas: group supervision, assistance in the work of EEA and FINMA colleges of supervisors, action required in emergency situations, safeguarding financial stability by monitoring and assessing risks, interconnectedness and conducting stress tests.

The internet is a legitimate channel that is increasingly used by firms to market investment products to retail investors. Firms use the internet to offer retail investors instant access to their systems.

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has today published guidelines on Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) and other UCITS issues. These guidelines will apply to national securities markets regulators and UCITS management companies.

UCITS are authorised funds which can be sold to retail investors across the European Union. Today’s guidelines set out the information that should be given to investors about index-tracking UCITS and UCITS ETFs, together with specific rules for UCITS when entering into over-the-counter financial derivative transactions and efficient portfolio management techniques. The guidelines also set out the criteria for financial indices in which UCITS may invest.

The guidelines were developed following a review of the current regulatory regime by ESMA which was found to be insufficient to address the specific features and risks associated with these types of funds and techniques.

Frankfurt, 13 July 2012 – The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) hosted on 11 July a Steering Committee Meeting of the EU/US insurance dialogue project. The 4th Steering Committee Meeting was hosted by Gabriel Bernardino, Chairman of EIOPA.

• The report focuses on what is to be achieved by the ORSA rather than on how it is to be performed

• Proportionality is a key feature of the ORSA

• Insurers’ Boards should take an active part in the ORSA, including steering on how the assessment is to be performed and challenging its results

• Insurer’s assessment of the overall solvency needs should be forward"looking

The European Banking Authority published today an overview report on the implementation of the capital exercise. In line with the EBA’s Recommendation, the vast majority of the banks in the sample meet the required ratio of 9% Core Tier 1 (CT1). For the few banks that were not fully able to meet the capital level using private sources, backstop measures are currently being implemented to ensure they are in line with the EBA’s Recommendation. While the market environments remain challenging, the overall resilience of the European banking system has improved, without any significant adverse impact on lending into the real economy.

• EIOPA proposes a balanced approach towards costs and benefits

• The proposed reporting templates will improve the efficiency of the risk-based  Supervisory Review Process and, thus, will enhance protection of policyholders 

• EIOPA proposal will contribute to financial stability and to the assessment and monitoring of market developments 

• EIOPA strongly believes that the industry should use the current proposal as a basis to start the implementation phase

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has today published two final sets of guidelines aimed at enhancing the protection of investors in the EU. The guidelines relate to the provisions under the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) relating to the suitability of investment advice and the compliance function.

The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) published today its first set of Guidelines with a view to establishing consistent, efficient and effective supervisory practices and ensuring common, uniform and consistent application of EU law.

The European Banking Authority (EBA) launched today three consultations on Draft Implementing Technical Standards (ITS) on disclosure for own funds, on supervisory reporting requirements for liquidity coverage and stable funding, and on supervisory reporting requirements for leverage ratio.

The EBA published today two sets of Guidelines on Stressed Value-At-Risk (Stressed VaR) and on the Incremental Default and Migration Risk Charge (IRC) modelling approaches employed by credit institutions using the Internal Model Approach (IMA).

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published a report on the use of administrative and criminal sanctions by European Union (EU) national regulators under the Market Abuse Directive (MAD). The report provides a comparison of the use of administrative sanctioning powers across 29 EEA Member States for 2008-2010. The results of the report will provide input to the legislative process on the new market abuse regime.

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) announces today that it considers the regulatory frameworks for credit rating agencies (CRAs) of Argentina and Mexico to be in line with European Union rules. Today’s announcement allows European financial institutions to continue using credit ratings issued in these countries for regulatory purposes after 30 April 2012.

EIOPA has published today the press release on good practices for disclosure and selling of variable annuities.

ESMA publishes today a consultation paper (ESMA/2012/44) setting out future guidelines on UCITS Exchange-Traded Funds (UCITS ETFs) and other UCITS-related issues.  The proposals cover both synthetic and physical UCITS ETFs and detail the obligations to come for UCITS ETFs, index-tracking UCITS, efficient portfolio management techniques, total return swaps and strategy indices for UCITS

ESMA issues regarding extending the transitional period for the use of non-EU credit ratings, the endorsement of the Australian CRA regime and the adoption of four regulatory technical standards in the field of credit rating agencies.

The European Banking Authority (EBA) today published a formal Recommendation, and the final figures, related to banks’ recapitalisation needs. These measures form part of a broader European package, agreed by the European Council on 26 October and confirmed during the ECOFIN Council on 30 November, to address the current situation in the EU by restoring stability and confidence in the markets.

ESMA (the European Securities and Markets Authority)

• warns investors against dealing with unauthorised firms offering foreign exchange investments, and
• alerts retail investors to the main risks involved in forex trading

The three European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs), ESMA, EBA, and EIOPA respectively, today appointed members and alternates of their joint Board of Appeal. The joint Board of the ESAs is independent from their administrative and regulatory structures and will hear appeals from certain decisions taken by the ESAs. The decisions of the Board itself are subject to appeal before the Court of Justice of the European Union.

On 31 October 2011 ESMA announced the successful registrations of DBRS, Fitch Ratings, Moody’s Investor Service, and Standard & Poor’s (S&P) as Credit Rating Agencies (CRAs). In order to do business in the European Union (EU), the EU Regulation on Credit Rating Agencies ((EC) No 1060/2009 – “the CRA Regulation”)1 re-quires CRAs to be registered in compliance with the requirements of the Regulation. Today’s registrations are valid for all European entities of DBRS, Fitch, Moody’s, and S&P respectively (see annex table 1 with the list of the EU entities registered).

26 October 2011
The European Banking Authority (EBA) supports the agreement at EU level on measures to restore confidence in the banking sector. These measures form part of a broader package aimed at addressing the current situation in the EU by restoring stability and confidence in the markets. Their implementation is conditional on the other components of the package being fully clarified and endorsed.

The European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB) has today published a set of recommendations on lending in currencies other than the legal tender of the relevant country (“foreign currency lending”) addressed to the Member States of the EU, their national supervisory authorities and the European Banking Authority.

OTP Bank Plc. was subject to the 2011 EU-wide stress test conducted by the European Banking Authority (EBA), in cooperation with the Hungarian Financial Supervisory Authority, the European Central Bank (ECB), the European Commission (EC) and the European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB).