Oops.

Our website is temporarily unavailable in your location.

We are working hard to get it back online.

PRIVACY
News

Mifid II sparks fears of red tape impact as new rules come into force

The EU’s Markets in Financial Instruments Directive - the last piece of post-2008 crash legislation to come into force - looks set to subject investors and financial firms to a major regulatory shake-up

The EU’s Mifid II is an attempt to provide greater protection to investors and shore up transparency throughout the financial system(Image: Reuters)

Regulations touted as the last piece of post-crash legislation come into force, subjecting investors and financial firms to major regulatory shake-up.

The EU’s Markets in Financial Instruments Directive - Mifid II - is an attempt to provide greater protection to investors and shore up transparency throughout the financial system.

The new regulations, first conceived in 2010, following the original 20014 MIFID, are an attempt to remove risk from the financial system by reducing opportunities for conflicts of interest and concealment of trades.

The body of measures includes around 1.7 million paragraphs of rules covering the EU's entire trading system, from brokers, hedge funds and institutional investors, to banks, exchanges and traders.

Catherine McGuinness, the City of London Corporation's policy chairman, said the implementation will be a "real watershed moment" for financial regulation.

She added: "It will be the last major piece of regulatory reform following the financial crash of 2008.

"Financial and professional services firms have worked hard in recent times to implement these onerous and complex changes.

"While they have been a big distraction for firms, I am certain they are well-placed to strengthen their position in the global marketplace."