Steven Maijoor delivers keynote speech at AFME's Legal and Compliance Conference

In an address focusing on the challenges facing ESMA including: enhancing the role and responsibilties of ESMA; strengthening the supervision of EU and non-EU CCPs; and Brexit, Mr. Maijoor reiterated that:

"my positivity on the steps taken in recent times to strengthen the EU’s regulatory and supervisory framework, through initiatives such as the ESAs Review and the introduction of EMIR 2.2. The EU’s financial system will continue to face many challenges, including those challenges stemming from Brexit, and the system must be robust enough to tackle those head on."

​Key highlights included:

​Enhancing the role and responsibilities of ESMA - following the completion of the ESAs Review and EMIR 2.2., he emphasised that: 

"the ultimate outcome is still a very important evolution in ESMA's role and powers. The most important changes come via new and improved instruments to foster convergence in the way the European financial sector is supervised."

​Strengthening the supervision of EU and non-EU CCPs ​- speaking on changes in this area, he said that:

"the strengthened supervisory framework for CCPs [...], improves the ability of CCPs in EU and non-EU countries to tackle emerging risks and challenges. It also addresses some of the limitations of the current recognition regime for non-EU CCPs."

"...ESMA's experience and expertise on CCPs, gained from its pivotal roel in ensuring supervisory convergence for EU CCPs, including through its active participation in the 17 CCP supervisory colleges, and its pioneering work in CCP stress-testing, provide essential building blocks for this new supervisory mandate."

"I believe that this is also a very proportionate solution, as it does not introduce any additional requirements for non-systemic non-EU CCPs. The new framework is also quite sensible in the global context, as it brings us in substance closer to the US regime for third country CCPs, and that closer alignment is beneficial for all."

Brexit ​- while in covering the key immediate issue facing ESMA he reiterated that:

"While preparations are ongoing for a potential no-deal Brexit, ESMA once more urges all market participants, investors as well as consumers to ensure contingency planning, as you should not rely on public solutions to mitigate potential cliff-edge effects, should they materialise. ESMA has been aiding this work as much as possible."