Application du Règlement Abus de Marché à partir du 3 juillet 2016 (uniquement en anglais)

The CSSF wishes to highlight that Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 of 16 April 2014 on market abuse (hereinafter, the “Market Abuse Regulation” or “MAR”) will apply from 3 July 2016 unless expressly provided otherwise.

The Market Abuse Regulation and the related legal instruments adopted at the level of the European Union put into place a new framework for the prevention, detection, investigation and the punishment of market abuse. The new framework replaces the existing framework that was established by Directive 2003/6/EC and implemented in Luxembourg by the law of 9 May 2006 on market abuse, as amended (hereafter, the “Market Abuse Law” or “MAL”). One of the distinctive features of the new framework is a more detailed and sometimes more stringent regulation of the existing rules and obligations. Another distinctive feature is the extended scope of the new market abuse framework, in particular as regards the trading venues covered by it (including the financial instruments negotiated thereon). The new market abuse framework not only applies to regulated markets but also to multilateral trading facilities (MTF) and, as from the application of Directive 2014/65/EU (MiFID 2), to organised trading facilities (OTF). The texts of the Market Abuse Regulation and the related legal instruments adopted at the level of the European Union have been published in the Official Journal of the European Union and will be available shortly on the homepage of the CSSF.

This press release purports to clarify certain points concerning the application of the Market Abuse Regulation in Luxembourg as from 3 July 2016.

Replacement of provisions of the Market Abuse Law by the corresponding provisions of the Market Abuse Regulation 

As from 3 July 2016, the provisions of the Market Abuse Regulation (with the exception of those designated in Article 39 (2) of MAR) are binding and directly applicable in Luxembourg by virtue of Article 288 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

Regardless of the fact that the Luxembourg legislator has not yet specifically adjusted the Market Abuse Law to the new framework established by MAR, those provisions of MAR that are directly applicable (i.e. all provisions of MAR with the exception of those designated in its Article 39 (2)) will nevertheless immediately replace the corresponding provisions of the Market Abuse Law because of the principle of precedence of EU law and because of the directly applicable nature of the MAR provisions in question.

A substitution table indicating the relevant provisions of the Market Abuse Regulation and the Market Abuse Law is available, for your convenience, under the following Internet address:

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ESMA FAQs on the Market Abuse Regulation

The CSSF wishes to remind that one of the tasks conferred upon ESMA is to contribute to the consistent application of legally binding acts adopted at the level of the European Union. This task is also relevant when it comes to the Market Abuse Regulation.

In light of the above, the CSSF wishes to highlight the publication by ESMA of frequently asked questions on the Market Abuse Regulation. The first question and answer was published on 30 May 2016 and deals with the obligation to detect and notify suspicious orders and transactions under Article 16 of MAR, which, as clarified by ESMA, is not limited to MiFID investment firms, but also applies to buy side firms.

The document is available under the following Internet address:

https://www.esma.europa.eu/sites/default/files/library/2016-738_mar_qa.pdf.

CSSF circulars and FAQs on the Market Abuse Regulation in Luxembourg 

The application of the new market abuse framework by the CSSF in Luxembourg may be detailed in future CSSF circulars and/or frequently asked questions, including with respect to topics dealt with in Circulars CSSF 06/257, 07/280 and 07/323 within the context of the Market Abuse Law.

Questions on the application of the new market abuse framework may be sent to: market.abuse@cssf.lu.

Forms, templates and means of transmission

The forms to be used for the notification to the CSSF of suspicious transactions and order reports (STORs) and of managers’ transactions will be available shortly on the homepage of the CSSF. Those forms correspond to the templates set out in annex to Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/523 of 10 March 2016 for managers’ transaction and Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/957 of 9 March 2016 for STORs.

The templates to be used for insider lists will also be available shortly on the homepage of the CSSF. Those templates correspond to the templates set out in annex to Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/347.

All notifications and other relevant information or documents to be transmitted to the CSSF under the Market Abuse Regulation shall be sent by email to: market.abuse@cssf.lu.

For further questions on the means of transmission, please contact Antoine de Chantérac (tel.: +352 26 251 2906) or Carole Renier (tel.: +352 26 251 2947) from the Market Abuse Division of the CSSF.