Article 54 Approval of interoperability arrangements

1. An interoperability arrangement, or any material change to an approved interoperability arrangement under Title V shall be subject to the prior approval of the competent authorities of the CCPs involved. The CCPs’ competent authorities shall request the opinion of ESMA in accordance with Article 24a(7), first subparagraph, point (bc), and the college referred to in Article 18 in accordance with Article 19, and issued in accordance with the procedure set out in Article 17b.

2. The competent authorities shall grant approval of the interoperability arrangement only where the CCPs involved have been authorised to clear under Article 17 or recognised under Article 25 or authorised under a pre-existing national authorisation regime for a period of at least three years, the requirements laid down in Article 52 are met and the technical conditions for clearing transactions under the terms of the arrangement allow for a smooth and orderly functioning of financial markets and the arrangement does not undermine the effectiveness of supervision.

3. Where a competent authority considers that the requirements laid down in paragraph 2 are not met, it shall provide explanations in writing regarding its risk considerations to the other competent authorities and the CCPs involved. It shall also notify ESMA, which shall issue an opinion on the effective validity of the risk considerations as grounds for denial of the interoperability arrangement. ESMA’s opinion shall be made available to all the CCPs involved. Where ESMA’s opinion differs from the assessment of the relevant competent authority, that competent authority shall reconsider its position, taking into account ESMA’s opinion.

4. By 25 June 2026, ESMA shall issue guidelines or recommendations with a view to establishing consistent, efficient and effective assessments of interoperability arrangements by national competent authorities, in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 16 of Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010. ESMA shall develop drafts of those guidelines or recommendations after consulting the members of the ESCB.

5. ESMA, after consulting the members of the ESCB and the ESRB, shall develop draft regulatory technical standards to further specify the requirements for CCPs to adequately manage the risks arising from interoperability arrangements. For that purpose, ESMA shall take into account the guidelines issued under paragraph 4 and assess whether the provisions included therein are appropriate in the case of interoperability arrangements covering all types of products or contracts, including derivative contracts and non-financial instruments.

ESMA shall submit the draft regulatory technical standards referred to in the first subparagraph to the Commission by 25 December 2025.

Power is delegated to the Commission to supplement this Regulation by adopting the regulatory technical standards referred to in the first subparagraph of this paragraph in accordance with Articles 10 to 14 of Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010.