On 30 October 2026, the Council of the European Union published an 'A' Item Note on the Market Integration and Supervision Package (MISP), which sets out the Council's agreed general approach on three legislative proposals aimed at further developing capital market integration and supervision within the European Union.

Key Requirements:

The package comprises:

• A proposed Regulation on settlement finality, repealing Directive 98/26/EC and amending Directive 2002/47/EC on financial collateral arrangements.
• A proposed Directive amending Directives 2009/65/EC (UCITS), 2011/61/EU (AIFMD) and 2014/65/EU (MiFID II) regarding the further development of capital market integration and supervision within the Union.
• A proposed Regulation amending multiple EU financial services regulations relating to capital market integration and supervision.
• The Council Working Party discussed the proposals extensively throughout 2025 and 2026 and agreed the texts forming the Council's general approach.

Next Steps / Timeline:

• The Council is invited to adopt the general approach at the Economic and Financial Affairs Council meeting on 9 November 2026. Following this, the Presidency intends to begin interinstitutional negotiations once the European Parliament finalises its negotiating position. Parliamentary negotiations remain ongoing.

The next stage is the commencement of interinstitutional negotiations between the Council and the European Parliament after the Parliament establishes its negotiating mandate.

BACKGROUND

On 5 October 2026, the Council of the European Union published a Presidency note on the Market Integration and Supervision Package (MISP), presenting a compromise text for a general approach. The package comprises a proposed Regulation on settlement finality repealing Directive 98/26/EC and amending Directive 2002/47/EC, a proposed Directive amending Directives 2009/65/EC, 2011/61/EU and 2014/65/EU, and a proposed Regulation amending a broad set of Union financial services acts as regards the further development of capital market integration and supervision within the Union. The package forms part of the EU’s Savings and Investments Union agenda and is intended to deepen capital market integration, reduce fragmentation and strengthen supervisory consistency. It affects a wide range of market participants, including trading venues, central counterparties, central securities depositories, asset managers, crypto-asset service providers and supervisors, notably ESMA and national competent authorities.

WHAT'S NEW?

Trading:

The compromise introduces the concepts of Pan-European Market Operators and Significant Trading Venues, both subject to direct ESMA supervision. It also expands the consolidated tape for shares and ETFs after the first five-year period, including three levels of order-book data, venue attribution, systematic internaliser data, and a mechanism for alternative closing prices. Additional market-structure changes cover frequent batch auctions, tick sizes, post-trade transparency and quoting obligations.

Post-trading and settlement finality:

The package provides for direct ESMA supervision of significant CCPs and significant CSDs. It also supports cross-border interoperability and service provision in clearing and settlement. On settlement finality, the proposed move from a directive to a regulation is intended to strengthen the single rulebook, reduce fragmentation, and increase legal certainty, including through provisions on registration, designation, re-registration and re-designation of systems and on insolvency protection.

Asset management:

The compromise includes measures to facilitate the use of staff, systems and expertise across EU asset-management groups, harmonise authorisation information requirements, strengthen supervisory coordination through colleges for large groups, improve the management and marketing passport, and allow Member States to permit the appointment of eligible depositaries in other Member States, subject to safeguards.

DLT Pilot Regime:

The compromise revises the DLT Pilot Regime by increasing thresholds, broadening eligible instruments and participants, enabling additional DLT activities, and introducing a simplified regime and unbundled services. It also removes the possibility for Member States to set different thresholds at national, project or group level.

ESMA supervision and governance:

The package provides for a significant transfer of supervisory responsibility to ESMA, including direct supervision of significant trading venues, significant CCPs, significant CSDs, significant CASPs and PEMOs. It also establishes a new independent Executive Board within ESMA for operational management and entity-specific supervisory decisions, while the Board of Supervisors remains responsible for regulatory decisions, strategy, budget and supervisory convergence.

Political issues identified by the Presidency:

The note states that two issues require political decision before the package can be agreed: ESMA funding and national contributions, and the definition of Significant Trading Venues. Two options are presented for ESMA funding, including retention of the current contribution key or a Commission review and possible legislative proposal for a new allocation key. For Significant Trading Venues, the compromise sets out market-share and cross-border criteria and includes a review clause for the Commission two years after application.

WHAT'S NEXT?

The Presidency note states that political agreement on ESMA funding and on the definition of Significant Trading Venues is required before the overall package can be agreed. The Presidency asks ministers whether they agree with the compromise text, including the removal of square brackets, and whether they give political support to the overall package. The note also refers to an interinstitutional commitment to reach agreement on MISP by the end of 2026.

On 1 October 2026, the European Commission (EC) published a Commission Delegated Regulation amending Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/584 (RTS 7), which updates the organisational requirements applicable to trading venues and introduces more detailed requirements concerning circuit breakers.

The Regulation applies to trading venues where order submission and order matching is facilitated by electronic means. Trading systems operating exclusively through voice negotiation fall outside its scope. It has EEA relevance and amends the RTS supplementing MiFID II.

Key Requirements:

• Clarifies the scope of RTS 7 and aligns it with amendments introduced through DORA-related legislative changes, including the removal of certain ICT-related requirements from RTS 7.
• Revises outsourcing provisions by requiring trading venues to notify competent authorities before outsourcing certain operational functions, including critical operational functions.
• Establishes common principles for the design, calibration, testing, monitoring and governance of circuit breakers, including trading halts and price collars.
• Requires trading venues to publish information on the functioning and effects of circuit breakers and to report annually to competent authorities on the parameters underpinning those mechanisms using a prescribed template.

The Regulation will enter into force on the third day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

On 19 October 2026, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published the Final Report on draft RTS amending Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 153/2013 in relation to public guarantees, public bank guarantees and commercial bank guarantees as collateral and in relation to certain aspects of investment policy and highly secure arrangements for the deposit of financial instruments, which sets out final draft regulatory technical standards implementing amendments introduced by EMIR 3 and targeted updates to CCP investment policy requirements.

Key Takeaways:

• ESMA proposes detailed conditions under which CCPs may accept public guarantees, public bank guarantees and commercial bank guarantees as eligible collateral, including concentration limits, credit quality and wrong-way risk requirements, enforceability standards, and arrangements for guarantees posted by non-financial clients.
• The draft RTS clarifies that CCPs may accept fully uncollateralised commercial and public bank guarantees, subject to risk management safeguards, and introduces requirements for client identification, attribution, notification mechanisms and beneficiary arrangements when guarantees are used by non-financial clients.
• ESMA also proposes targeted amendments to CCP investment rules by permitting debt instruments issued or guaranteed by the EU, BIS and IMF as eligible investment instruments and by recognising the Union Registry as a highly secure arrangement for holding emission allowances accepted as collateral.

Next Steps / Timeline

ESMA will submit the Final Report and draft RTS to the European Commission. The Commission has three months to decide whether to adopt the RTS as a Delegated Regulation. Following adoption, the RTS will be subject to scrutiny by the European Parliament and the Council.

On 16 October 2026, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published its Final Report on MAR Guidelines on delay in the disclosure of inside information, revising the existing MAR Guidelines to align them with the disclosure regime introduced by the Listing Act and the related delegated regulation on protracted processes.

Key Takeaways:

• Intermediate steps in protracted processes no longer subject to disclosure: ESMA updates the Guidelines to reflect the Listing Act rule that, in a protracted process, only the final event or final circumstance must be disclosed, while intermediate steps are no longer subject to disclosure or to the delayed disclosure mechanism. As a result, several existing examples of legitimate interests for delaying disclosure have been removed.
• New examples of legitimate interests added: ESMA introduces additional examples of legitimate interests that may justify delayed disclosure, including:
• Compliance with confidentiality orders issued by public authorities; the need to collect further information about exceptional events, including major incidents or cyber-attacks; the protection of sensitive commercial information where disclosure could jeopardise a concrete business opportunity; appointments of key managers before the termination of their current employment; and certain group-related situations where disclosure by one entity could undermine a valid delay by another group entity.
• Removal of the “misleading the public” section: the Guidelines delete the section on circumstances where delayed disclosure is likely to mislead the public, reflecting the Listing Act amendments, which replaced that condition with the requirement that delayed disclosure must not concern inside information that is in contrast with the issuer’s latest public announcement or other communication on the same matter.

The Guidelines will apply from the date of their publication on ESMA’s website in all official EU languages. Competent authorities must notify ESMA of their compliance status within two months of publication.

On 20 October 2026, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published the Final Report on Regulatory Standards on the requirements for Post-Trade Risk Reduction services for the purpose of the clearing obligation exemption under EMIR, which sets out ESMA’s final draft Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS) specifying the conditions under which transactions resulting from PTRR services may benefit from the EMIR clearing obligation exemption.

Key Takeaways:

• The draft RTS specifies the conditions for eligible PTRR services, including portfolio compression, portfolio rebalancing and basis risk optimisation, and clarifies requirements on market risk neutrality, risk reduction and safeguards against circumvention of the clearing obligation.
• The RTS introduce operational requirements for PTRR service providers covering governance, conflicts of interest, algorithm design and testing, transparency, participant onboarding, record-keeping, monitoring and compliance controls. Providers must ensure exercises remain market risk neutral, reduce overall risk in submitted portfolios and do not increase aggregate net uncleared risk.
• The RTS establish supervisory monitoring requirements, including annual compliance confirmations and reporting to competent authorities, notification of material changes and retention of PTRR records for at least ten years. The report also provides recommendations regarding MiFIR record-keeping obligations for PTRR-related exemptions from transparency, trading obligation and best execution requirements.

Next Steps / Timeline

ESMA submitted the Final Report and draft RTS to the European Commission on 9 October 2026. Under Article 10 of the ESMA Regulation, the Commission has three months to decide whether to endorse the proposed RTS.

On 19 October 2026, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published Methodology for assessing the Effectiveness of the Active Account Requirement, which establishes the analytical framework ESMA will use to assess whether the Active Account Requirement (AAR) under EMIR 3 is effectively reducing EU financial stability risks arising from excessive reliance on systemically important third-country central counterparties (Tier 2 CCPs).

Key Takeaways:

• ESMA sets out a structured assessment framework covering three elements:

(i) implementation status of the AAR,
(ii) effectiveness of the AAR in mitigating EU financial stability risks, and
(iii) assessment of potential complementary measures, including quantitative thresholds.

• The methodology assesses risks linked to the financial or operational failure of Tier 2 CCPs, discretionary decisions by Tier 2 CCPs or third-country authorities, and the EU’s structural reliance on third-country clearing services. ESMA will use quantitative indicators, qualitative evidence and supervisory judgement to evaluate the AAR’s effectiveness.
• The assessment will be based on AAR reporting, EMIR transaction reporting, AAR notifications, supervisory information and, where necessary, additional targeted data requests. The findings may inform recommendations and potential complementary measures to strengthen the objectives of EMIR 3.

The next step is for ESMA to launch additional data collection and stakeholder engagement activities, with a final assessment report planned for submission to the European Parliament, Council and Commission in 2027.

On 7 October 2026, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published a Public Statement on the extended transitional period for third-country central securities depositories (CSDs).

• The purpose of the statement is to clarify ESMA’s supervisory expectations regarding the continued provision of certain services by third-country CSDs pending the adoption of EU legislation extending the current transitional regime. It is also intended to provide greater legal and operational certainty to market participants, particularly issuers, who may otherwise face disruption if access to those services were to end on 17 January 2027.

Key takeaways:

• Under the current EU framework, third-country CSDs may provide notary services to issuers and central maintenance services to participants in relation to financial instruments constituted under the law of an EU Member State, subject to a specific recognition regime. Third-country CSDs already providing these services may continue to do so during a transitional period until a recognition decision is taken, or until 17 January 2027, whichever occurs earlier.
• ESMA notes that the Market Integration and Supervision Package (MISP) proposes to extend this transitional period by three years after its entry into force. ESMA also indicates that, based on its understanding, both the Council of the EU and the European Parliament support such an extension.
• The statement further explains that neither ESMA nor national competent authorities (NCAs) has the legal power to suspend or disapply directly applicable EU law. Any formal change to the applicable rules must therefore be made through EU legislation. However, in light of the proposed extension under the MISP and the emerging agreement between the EU co-legislators, ESMA states that it expects NCAs not to prioritise supervisory and enforcement actions in relation to third-country CSDs that are not recognised by ESMA until the proposed extended transitional period takes effect.

In practical terms, the statement is meant to ease market concerns, support forward planning, and signal a pragmatic supervisory approach while the EU legislative process is ongoing.

The next step is the completion of the EU legislative process relating to the proposed extension of the transitional regime for third-country CSDs under the MISP.

On 23 October 2026, the Official Journal of the European Union (OJ) published Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/1763, which amends the regulatory technical standards under MiFIR relating to transparency requirements for derivatives, package orders and consolidated tape data for OTC derivatives, and corrects certain provisions of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/587.

The Regulation applies to trading venues, investment firms, APAs and consolidated tape providers subject to Regulation (EU) No 600/2014 (MiFIR). It amends Delegated Regulations (EU) 2017/583, (EU) 2017/2194 and (EU) 2025/1155 and corrects Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/587. The Regulation is directly applicable across EU Member States.

Key Requirements:

• Introduces revised pre-trade and post-trade transparency frameworks for exchange-traded and certain OTC derivatives, including static liquidity determinations, large-in-scale thresholds and deferred publication thresholds.
• Updates rules for package orders by requiring that all components be subject to pre-trade transparency requirements before the package order itself is subject to such requirements.
• Establishes input and output data requirements for the OTC derivatives consolidated tape and removes exchange-traded commodities (ETCs) and exchange-traded notes (ETNs) from bond consolidated tape reporting.

Corrects Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/587 by restoring the obligation for investment firms to take reasonable steps to ensure publication as a single transaction.

Next Steps / Timeline

The Regulation enters into force on the twentieth day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union. Articles 1, 2 and 3(1)-(5) apply from 1 March 2027.

BACKGROUND

On 14 October 2026, the European Commission published Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/1536, adopted on 6 July 2026, amending the regulatory technical standards in Delegated Regulation (EU) 2018/1229 supplementing Regulation (EU) No 909/2014 (CSDR) on settlement discipline. The amendments are linked to Regulation (EU) 2025/2075, which shortened the standard settlement cycle in the Union from T+2 to T+1. The objective of the delegated regulation is to adjust the settlement discipline framework to the shorter settlement cycle, improve settlement efficiency, support greater use of straight-through processing (STP), and refine monitoring and reporting of settlement fails. The measures are relevant to central securities depositories (CSDs), their participants, investment firms, professional and retail clients, and other market participants involved in securities settlement.

WHAT'S NEW?

T+1-related pre-settlement changes:

The Regulation updates the settlement discipline RTS to support the move to a T+1 settlement cycle. Professional clients must send written allocations and confirmations in a standardised electronic and machine-readable format and by 23:00 CET on trade date. Retail clients must also provide relevant settlement information by 23:00 CET on trade date, unless they hold the instruments and cash with the same investment firm.

New data and instruction requirements:

Written allocations and settlement instructions are expanded to include additional data fields, including the settlement cash amount, the identifiers of the delivering and receiving participants, the place of settlement (PSET), and the place of trading. Buy-sell back and sell-buy back transactions are also expressly included in the relevant transaction categories.

CSD settlement efficiency measures:

CSDs must support further settlement efficiency measures, including automatic partial settlement unless a participant opts out, and must offer real-time gross settlement, at least three settlement batches per business day, or both. They must also facilitate access to intra-day cash credit secured with collateral through automated collateralisation functionality, unless directly providing such credit under a banking licence.

Enhanced settlement fail monitoring and reporting:

The Regulation strengthens the monitoring of settlement fails. CSDs must collect more granular information on fail reasons and remedial measures, report more detailed monthly data to authorities, and identify top failing participants by volume and value. The previous annual settlement fail report is removed and reporting templates are updated accordingly.

WHAT'S NEXT?

The Regulation entered into force on the twentieth day following its publication in the Official Journal. It applies from 7 December 2026. However, the amendments relating to the place-of-trading field, settlement fail reporting, deletion of Annex II, and amendments to Annexes I and III apply from 1 July 2027. The amendments relating to participant submission of settlement instructions by 23:59 CET, auto partial settlement, settlement batches, automated collateralisation, removal of the Article 12 derogation, and revised partial settlement rules apply from 11 October 2027.

On 12 October 2026, the European Commission published a draft Implementing Regulation setting out practical and specific arrangements for certain proceedings conducted by the Commission pursuant to Articles 75c and 75d of Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 (AI Act). The draft lays down procedural rules on access to the Commission’s file, protection of confidential information, and limitation periods for penalties in Commission enforcement proceedings concerning certain AI systems.

The draft Implementing Regulation applies in the context of proceedings conducted by the Commission under the AI Act, including proceedings relating to AI systems subject to direct Commission supervision under Article 75(1). It further specifies procedural arrangements for enforcement proceedings and penalties under Articles 75c and 75d of Regulation (EU) 2024/1689.

Key requirements:

• It establishes practical arrangements for access to the Commission’s file, including negotiated disclosure mechanisms, while safeguarding business secrets and other confidential information.

It specifies procedures for identifying and protecting confidential information during investigations and enforcement proceedings.

• It defines limitation periods for the imposition and enforcement of fines and periodic penalty payments, including circumstances in which those periods may be interrupted or suspended.
• The draft act is open for public feedback from 12 October 2026 to 9 November 2026. The Commission currently plans to adopt the Implementing Regulation in the fourth quarter of 2026. Once adopted, it will enter into force on the twentieth day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

The next step is the completion of the public feedback period, after which the Commission will finalise the text and may adopt the Implementing Regulation in Q4 2026.

On 14 October 2026, the European Commission (EC) published Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2026/2274 on the harmonised standard for high-risk AI systems drafted in support of Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 (AI Act), which publishes the reference of EN 18286:2026 – Artificial intelligence – Quality management system for EU AI Act regulatory purposes in the Official Journal of the European Union, enabling its use to demonstrate conformity with relevant requirements under the AI Act.

The Decision is relevant to providers and other stakeholders that rely on harmonised standards to demonstrate compliance with requirements under Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 (AI Act). The published standard relates specifically to quality management systems for AI Act regulatory purposes and supports compliance activities for high-risk AI systems within the EU framework.

Key Takeaways:

• The Commission assessed EN 18286:2026, developed by CEN and CENELEC, and concluded that it satisfies the requirements it is intended to cover under the AI Act. As a result, the standard's reference has been published in the Official Journal.
• The publication of the harmonised standard provides organisations with a recognised compliance tool for establishing and maintaining quality management systems aligned with the AI Act's regulatory framework. Use of the standard may support a structured approach to demonstrating conformity with applicable requirements.
• In accordance with the EU harmonisation framework, compliance with a harmonised standard whose reference has been published in the Official Journal confers a presumption of conformity with the corresponding requirements covered by that standard. This may facilitate conformity assessment and regulatory compliance for affected organisations.

The Decision entered into force on the date of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union, making the harmonised standard immediately available for use by entities seeking to demonstrate compliance with relevant AI Act requirements.

On 9 October 2026, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published a press release announcing a Call for Evidence on the potential use of tokenised collateral by central counterparties (CCPs), which seeks stakeholder input on whether, and under what conditions, tokenised forms of collateral could be used safely and effectively in EU central clearing.

Key Takeaways:

• ESMA is seeking evidence on the use of tokenised collateral by CCPs and on how tokenisation may affect the transfer, management, protection and use of collateral throughout its lifecycle.
• The Call for Evidence examines different tokenisation models, including tokenised representations of traditionally held assets ("digital twins"), assets issued directly on distributed ledger technology (DLT), and hybrid arrangements, as well as their interaction with tokenised cash and settlement assets.
• ESMA is requesting feedback on operational, legal and risk considerations, including collateral access, transferability, liquidity conversion following a clearing member default, client protection, segregation, settlement finality, and potential changes to the risk profile of eligible collateral due to tokenisation.

Stakeholders may submit responses until 15 January 2027. ESMA plans to assess the feedback during the first quarter of 2027 and will then determine whether regulatory or supervisory convergence actions are appropriate.

On 7 October 2026, the Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA) published its response to the European Commission's targeted consultation on the review of the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), which identifies AML/CFT-related priorities and areas where targeted amendments or clarifications could strengthen the management of money laundering and terrorist financing risks and support consistent supervision across the EU.

Key Takeaways:

• Staking, lending and borrowing: AMLA suggests that the European Commission consider bringing these activities within the regulatory framework, reflecting their specific ML/TF risks.
• DeFi arrangements and stablecoins: AMLA proposes consideration of a clear legal definition for DeFi arrangements and common criteria for identifying effective control, while also encouraging a consistent EU-wide approach to unauthorised stablecoins to reduce legal uncertainty.
• AML/CFT scope and supervision: AMLA suggests reviewing whether certain asset-referenced token issuers should be subject to AML/CFT obligations and identifies scope for clearer information requirements to support effective cross-border supervision of crypto-asset service providers.

AMLA states that it stands ready to support the European Commission in its review of MiCA.

On 7 October 2026, the Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA) published draft regulatory technical standards (RTS) on an EU-wide AML/CFT database, which establish the framework for the collection, reporting and retrieval of supervisory AML/CFT information across the EU supervisory system.

Key Takeaways:

• AMLA proposes a central AML/CFT database that will act as a single point through which supervisory authorities report and retrieve information on obliged entities, supervisors and supervisory activities.
• The draft RTS specify how and when supervisors must report information, including the required scope and level of detail, while aiming to minimise reporting burdens through the use of existing supervisory data and automated reporting processes.
• The standards also establish a materiality threshold for reporting breaches and define the circumstances under which AMLA may request additional information from supervisors.

The consultation process includes a public hearing scheduled for 3 November 2026, and stakeholders are invited to provide feedback on the draft standards until this date.

BACKGROUND

On 1 October 2026, the Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AMLA) published a press release on the finalisation of three sets of draft regulatory technical standards (RTS). The RTS were developed under Regulation (EU) 2024/1624 (AMLR) and relate to Article 28(1) on customer due diligence, Article 19(9) on business relationships, occasional transactions and linked transactions, and Articles 16(4) and 17(3) on group-wide arrangements and third-country impediments. The publication forms part of the EU’s new AML/CFT framework and the move to a more harmonised AML/CFT rulebook through directly applicable Union legislation. It applies to obliged entities across the financial and non-financial sectors, as well as to supervisors, with certain provisions also addressing group structures, branches and subsidiaries in third countries, and entities such as football agents and professional football clubs.

WHAT'S NEW?

Business relationships and occasional transactions:

AMLA finalised RTS specifying how obliged entities are to distinguish between business relationships and occasional transactions and how linked transactions are to be identified. The RTS provide criteria for assessing elements such as duration, repetition, origin, destination and purpose of transactions, including targeted criteria for certain sectors such as currency exchange, money remittance, crypto-asset services, gambling, and football-related transfers. The RTS also confirm that no additional lower customer due diligence thresholds are introduced beyond those already provided in the AMLR.

Customer due diligence:

AMLA finalised RTS specifying the information and requirements for standard, simplified and enhanced customer due diligence. The text covers identification and verification of natural and legal persons, beneficial ownership, persons acting on behalf of customers, understanding the purpose and intended nature of the relationship or transaction, politically exposed person screening, and targeted financial sanctions screening. It also specifies the use of electronic identification means, relevant qualified trust services, alternative non-face-to-face verification measures, and risk factors relevant to supervisory exemptions for certain electronic money instruments.

Group-wide arrangements:

AMLA finalised RTS setting minimum requirements for group-wide AML/CFT policies, procedures and controls. These include governance, group-wide risk assessment, internal controls, whistleblowing, incident reporting, training, and information sharing within groups. The RTS also set out additional measures and supervisory actions where third-country legal or regulatory restrictions impede compliance with the AMLR. In addition, they establish criteria for identifying the parent undertaking in the Union in certain third-country group structures and conditions for applying group-wide requirements to other structures, including networks, partnerships and franchises sharing common ownership, management or compliance control.

WHAT'S NEXT?

The final draft RTS have been submitted to the European Commission for adoption. They are to be published in the Official Journal of the European Union once adopted. According to the press release, the RTS are proposed to apply six months after entry into force. For football agents and professional football clubs, the RTS are proposed to apply from 10 July 2029.

BACKGROUND

On 1 October 2026, AMLA published its final report containing draft regulatory technical standards under Article 46(4) of Directive (EU) 2024/1640 on the respective duties of home and host AML/CFT supervisors and the modalities of cooperation between them. The draft RTS are intended to provide a harmonised framework for supervision of cross-border groups of obliged entities in both the financial and non-financial sectors. They are designed to address gaps in operational cooperation, particularly where no AML/CFT supervisory college is in place, and to support more consistent group-level supervision across the EU.

WHAT'S NEW?

Scope and structure:

The draft RTS establish a single horizontal framework for supervisory cooperation applicable across the financial and non-financial sectors. They apply to cooperation in relation to groups of obliged entities operating in different Member States and complement, rather than replace, the AML/CFT supervisory college framework where colleges are established.

Cooperation modalities:

The RTS are structured around three main forms of cooperation:

• Information exchange, including exchanges on request and on supervisors’ own initiative;
• Inquiries, including the conduct or facilitation of cross-border supervisory inquiries;
• Coordinated supervisory approaches, including coordinated or joint supervisory activities.

Information exchange and disclosure:

The RTS require supervisors to share, on their own initiative, information that could significantly influence the assessment of the inherent or residual risk exposure of an obliged entity in another Member State. This includes risk assessments, supervisory findings, relevant regulatory developments, and information on sanctions or administrative measures. Before requesting information, supervisors are expected to verify whether it is already available through registers or databases.

The RTS also set out a notification-based approach for onward disclosure of information within the EU AML/CFT supervisory system. Information exchanged under Article 46 AMLD may be disclosed to other members of the supervisory system without prior consent of the originating supervisor, subject to notification. Information originating from third-country counterparts remains subject to prior consent.

Practical arrangements:

The RTS specify request procedures, acknowledgment and response obligations, communication channels, record-keeping requirements, and minimum arrangements for cross-border inquiries. They also provide for agreed coordinated supervisory approaches, including documentation of scope, timeline, information-sharing arrangements, and possible coordinated follow-up.

WHAT'S NEXT?

The draft RTS will be submitted to the European Commission for adoption. They will then be published in the Official Journal of the European Union. Under Article 10 of the draft RTS, the Regulation will enter into force on the twentieth day following publication in the Official Journal. It will apply from 10 July 2027.

On 21 October 2026, the EU OJ published Council Decision (EU) 2026/2356, which authorises the signing, on behalf of the European Union, of the Additional Protocol to the Council of Europe Convention on Laundering, Search, Seizure and Confiscation of the Proceeds from Crime and on the Financing of Terrorism.

Key Takeaways:

• The Decision authorises the signing of the Additional Protocol by the European Union, subject to the Protocol's future conclusion. The Protocol was adopted by the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers on 15 May 2026 and was envisaged to be opened for signature on 14 October 2026.
• According to the Decision, the Protocol contains provisions concerning its purpose and scope, definitions of virtual assets and virtual asset service providers, suspension powers of financial intelligence units (FIUs), cooperation among FIUs, and the establishment of national central automated mechanisms containing information on bank accounts, payment accounts, securities accounts, safe-deposit boxes and virtual asset accounts.

The Council states that the Protocol has the potential to strengthen anti-money laundering frameworks and cooperation among Council of Europe Member States and other parties. The Decision also notes that the Protocol overlaps with several existing EU AML, asset recovery and confiscation measures.

The Decision entered into force on the date of its adoption, and the Protocol will subsequently be signed on behalf of the Union, subject to its future conclusion.

On 22 October 2026, the Official Journal of the European Union (OJ) published Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/2354 on formats for submitting beneficial ownership information, which establishes common formats, data fields and minimum submission requirements for reporting beneficial ownership information to national central beneficial ownership registers under the EU AML framework.

The Regulation applies to the submission of beneficial ownership information to central registers established under Directive (EU) 2024/1640. It covers beneficial owners, legal entities, legal arrangements, nominees, ownership and control structures, and related registration data. The Regulation is binding and directly applicable in all Member States.

Key Requirements:

• Establishes standardized formats for submitting beneficial owner data, including personal information, ownership interests, control mechanisms, legal entity information, legal arrangements and nominee arrangements.
• Requires the submission of ownership and control structure information, including organisational charts or structured data for complex ownership structures.
• Introduces a minimum checklist of information that must be provided before beneficial ownership submissions can be accepted by central registers.

Allows central registers to reuse data already available in other registers instead of requiring duplicate submissions.

The Regulation enters into force on the twentieth day following its publication in the Official Journal and applies from 10 July 2027. Member States and entities subject to the reporting requirements should prepare for implementation of the harmonised submission formats before the application date.

On 21 October 2026, the European Parliament (EP) published “Savings and Investments Union: Deal on revitalising the EU’s securitisation market”, which announces a provisional political agreement between Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee (ECON) negotiators and the Council Presidency on amendments to the EU securitisation framework and prudential treatment of securitisation exposures.

The publication concerns the EU securitisation framework, including simple, transparent and standardised (STS) securitisations, prudential treatment of securitisation exposures, supervisory arrangements, transparency requirements and reporting obligations within the European Union. It applies to market participants involved in securitisation transactions and relevant supervisory authorities.

Key Requirements:

• The agreement introduces a revised approach for the capital treatment of securitisations, replacing fixed minimum risk weights with a formula linked to underlying asset quality in order to increase risk sensitivity. A 5% risk-weight floor was agreed for safer asset classes.
• ESMA will supervise third-party verifiers (TPVs) of STS criteria, including powers to withdraw authorisation for non-compliance. A new “comply or explain” mechanism between national authorities and the EBA will support supervisory convergence.
• The agreement distinguishes between public and private securitisations, introducing simplified reporting for private securitisations while maintaining full transparency requirements for public transactions. Specific reporting arrangements are introduced for collateralised loan obligations (CLOs).

The provisional agreement must be formally adopted by both the European Parliament and the Council before it can enter into force.

On 8 October 2026, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published the Opinion on the provision of crypto-asset services in relation to non-MiCA-compliant asset-referenced tokens and e-money tokens, which sets out supervisory expectations regarding the provision of crypto-asset services involving asset-referenced tokens (ARTs) and e-money tokens (EMTs) that do not comply with the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA).

Key Takeaways:

• ESMA considers that authorised crypto-asset service providers (CASPs) should not provide crypto-asset services in relation to non-MiCA-compliant ARTs or EMTs, as doing so would expose clients to risks arising from the absence of MiCA safeguards and would be inconsistent with CASP obligations under MiCA.
• The supervisory expectation applies to all MiCA-regulated crypto-asset services, including trading platforms, exchange services, execution and transmission of orders, placing, advice, transfers, custody and portfolio management. CASPs should implement technical, contractual and organisational controls preventing EU clients from accessing or increasing exposure to non-compliant tokens.
• National competent authorities (NCAs) are expected to assess whether CASPs maintain or facilitate access to non-MiCA-compliant ARTs and EMTs. Limited residual services may be permitted only to support an orderly wind-down of existing positions, such as liquidation, conversion, withdrawal, transfer or safekeeping.

ESMA expects NCAs to require remediation of any remaining legacy exposures as soon as possible and no later than three months following publication of the Opinion, while continuing to monitor its implementation.

On 21 October 2026, the Official Journal of the European Union (OJ) published Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/2343 amending the regulatory technical standards laid down in Delegated Regulation (EU) No 149/2013 as regards the clearing thresholds and the mechanisms triggering their review, which updates the clearing threshold framework under EMIR and introduces mechanisms for reviewing those thresholds.

The Regulation applies within the framework of Regulation (EU) No 648/2012 (EMIR) and establishes clearing thresholds for financial and non-financial counterparties in relation to OTC derivatives. It introduces aggregate-position clearing thresholds for OTC credit and interest rate derivatives and recalibrates uncleared-position thresholds across OTC derivative asset classes. It is directly applicable in all EU Member States.

Key Requirements:

Sets aggregate-position clearing thresholds of EUR 1 billion for OTC credit derivatives and EUR 3 billion for OTC interest rate derivatives.

Establishes uncleared-position clearing thresholds of:

EUR 0.8 billion for OTC credit derivatives;

EUR 0.7 billion for OTC equity derivatives;

EUR 2.2 billion for OTC interest rate derivatives;

EUR 3 billion for OTC foreign exchange derivatives;

EUR 4 billion for combined OTC commodity and emission allowance derivatives.

Requires ESMA to assess at least annually a set of market indicators and initiate a review of clearing thresholds where significant changes are identified. These indicators include underlying prices, volatility, clearing rates, participation in clearing, inflation, global financial conditions, and geopolitical and economic policy uncertainties.

This Regulation enters into force on the twentieth day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

On 13 October 2026, the European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) published the 2027 Joint Committee Work Programme, which sets out the cross-sectoral regulatory, supervisory and policy priorities that will guide their joint activities across the EU financial sector during 2027.

Key Takeaways:

• The ESAs will prioritise digital operational resilience, including oversight of critical ICT third-party providers (CTPPs), supervisory convergence under DORA, ICT incident reporting, cyber-resilience coordination through the EU-SCICF framework, and support for the European Commission's potential DORA review.
• The programme includes work on consumer protection, sustainable finance, securitisation, financial conglomerates, innovation, AI, tokenisation and cross-sectoral risk monitoring. Expected outputs include technical standards, supervisory convergence initiatives, risk assessments, market monitoring, consultation activities and guidance.
• The ESAs will continue joint activities relating to SFDR, PRIIPs, financial conglomerates, External Credit Assessment Institutions (ECAIs), and the monitoring of BigTechs, Mixed Activity Groups (MAGs) and innovation trends in the EU financial sector.

The work programme outlines the planned deliverables and supervisory cooperation activities for 2027, with several initiatives expected to result in consultations, technical standards, reports, risk updates and supervisory convergence outputs throughout the year.

BACKGROUND

On 23 October 2026, the Council of the European Union published its position at first reading on the proposed Directive on payment services in the internal market. The proposed Directive is part of the EU’s new payment services framework and would amend Directive 98/26/EC and Regulation (EU) 2023/1114, while repealing Directives 2009/110/EC and (EU) 2015/2366. Together with the parallel Regulation on payment services in the internal market, it would replace the current PSD2/e-money framework with a split model under which conduct-of-business rules sit mainly in a regulation and authorisation and supervision rules sit in the directive. The text is relevant to payment institutions, e-money issuers, account information service providers, payment initiation service providers, ATM deployers, crypto-asset service providers dealing with e-money tokens, and competent authorities.

WHAT'S NEW?

Single prudential and supervisory framework:

The Council text provides for a single authorisation framework for payment institutions, replacing the separate regime for electronic money institutions while preserving certain e-money-specific features. It also confirms the new split between the Directive, which governs authorisation and supervision, and the separate Regulation, which will contain the conduct-of-business and operational payment services rules.

Updated rules for e-money, crypto-assets and safeguarding:

The text clarifies the treatment of electronic money tokens under MiCA and provides that payment institutions may, subject to notification, provide certain crypto-asset services related to e-money tokens where those services are deemed equivalent to payment services. It also updates prudential requirements, including initial capital, own funds and safeguarding of users’ funds, with revised rules on segregation, insurance or comparable guarantees, and in some cases the use of settlement accounts.

Revised regimes for market access and cross-border activity:

The Council position refines the rules on agents, branches, outsourcing and home-host supervisory cooperation, and updates targeted exemption or registration regimes for small payment institutions, account information service providers, ATM deployers not servicing payment accounts, and cash withdrawals in retail stores without a purchase.

WHAT'S NEXT?

This is the Council’s first-reading position under the ordinary legislative procedure. The file now proceeds to the next stage of the legislative process with the European Parliament. Under the current draft, once adopted and published, Member States would be required to transpose and apply the Directive 21 months after its entry into force.

On 21 October 2026, the Council of the European Union (Council) published its Position of the Council at first reading with a view to the adoption of a Regulation on payment services in the internal market and amending Regulations (EU) No 1093/2010, (EU) No 260/2012, (EU) 2017/2394 and (EU) 2021/1230, which establishes a harmonised EU framework for payment services, open banking, fraud prevention, user protection, electronic money, and payment service provider obligations.

The Regulation applies to payment services provided within the Union by credit institutions, payment institutions, post office giro institutions, central banks (when not acting as public authorities), and public authorities in specified circumstances. It also imposes obligations on technical service providers, payment system operators, payment schemes, telecom providers, hosting providers, very large online platforms/search engines, and mobile device manufacturers for specific provisions. The Regulation is designated as a text with EEA relevance.

Key Requirements:

• Introduces enhanced anti-fraud measures, including mandatory payee verification, transaction-monitoring mechanisms, stronger liability and refund frameworks, and measures addressing impersonation fraud.
• Establishes a revised open banking regime with dedicated interfaces, consent dashboards, stronger access rights for payment initiation and account information service providers, and enforcement against barriers to data access.
• Introduces requirements relating to strong customer authentication, spending limits, refund rights, payment account access, transparency of fees, electronic money, and payment transactions involving electronic money tokens.

The Council position forms part of the ordinary legislative procedure and represents the Council’s first-reading position. The Regulation will enter into force on the twentieth day following publication in the Official Journal of the European Union and is intended to apply 21 months thereafter. Specific provisions on payee verification would apply 27 months after entry into force.

The next step is the continuation of the legislative process following the Council’s first-reading position.

On 28 October 2026, the European Commission (EC) published the draft Commission Delegated Regulation amending the regulatory technical standards laid down in Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/2251 with regard to initial margin requirements applicable to contracts of counterparties that fall below the threshold, which proposes amendments to the EMIR Margin RTS to extend the initial margin exemption for certain non-centrally cleared OTC derivatives contracts.

The draft Regulation applies to counterparties subject to the margin requirements under EMIR and Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/2251 for non-centrally cleared OTC derivatives within the EU/EEA framework.

Key Requirements:

• Where the aggregate month-end average notional amount (AANA) of non-centrally cleared OTC derivatives for March, April and May is below EUR 8 billion for one counterparty, counterparties may stop collecting initial margin and may release initial margin already collected for outstanding contracts.
• Where both counterparties exceed the EUR 8 billion threshold, initial margin requirements apply only to new OTC derivative contracts entered into between the counterparties.

The Regulation removes obsolete transitional provisions relating to single-stock and equity-index options following changes introduced under EMIR 3.

Counterparties falling below the threshold may apply the exemption as early as 1 June of the relevant year.

Counterparties moving above the threshold must apply initial margin requirements for new contracts no later than 1 January of the following calendar year.

The draft Regulation would enter into force on the 20th day following publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

The next step is adoption of the Delegated Regulation and subsequent publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

On 29 October 2026, the European Banking Authority (EBA) published the Final Report on Certain Taxonomy Key Performance Indicators and Other Aspects of the Disclosures Delegated Act under Article 8 of the Taxonomy Regulation, which provides technical advice to the European Commission on targeted simplifications of Taxonomy disclosure requirements for financial institutions.

Key Takeaways:

• The EBA advises the European Commission to remove the Fees and Commissions KPI and the Trading Book KPI from Taxonomy disclosure requirements, citing limited decision-usefulness, operational complexity, implementation costs, and proportionality concerns.
• The EBA recommends narrowing the investment firms’ “other services” KPI to capital market-related activities (portfolio management, investment advice, underwriting and placing services), and suggests considering an asset-value-based methodology instead of a revenue-based approach.
• The EBA and other ESAs advise against introducing voluntary use of OpEx-based information in financial institution KPIs, support simplified group-level reporting based primarily on parent undertaking KPIs, and propose aligning grandfathering rules with the EU Green Bond Regulation while maintaining unlimited grandfathering for certain other Taxonomy-aligned financial instruments. The report also recommends simplifications to disclosure templates, including Green Asset Ratio (GAR) reporting.

The report has been submitted to the European Commission as technical advice and is expected to inform the Commission’s future review of the Disclosures Delegated Act.

On 30 October 2026, the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) published Final Advice on the Review of (Re)Insurance Disclosures under the Taxonomy Disclosures Delegated Act, which provides technical advice to the European Commission on simplifying and improving Taxonomy disclosure requirements for (re)insurance undertakings and addressing selected cross-sectoral Taxonomy reporting issues.

Key Takeaways:

• EIOPA recommends targeted revisions to the current underwriting KPI, including standardising numerator calculations, limiting the denominator to the eight Taxonomy-eligible non-life lines of business, and renaming the metric as the “Adaptation Underwriting KPI” to better reflect its purpose.
• EIOPA advises replacing the current combined KPI with a reference KPI, determined by the most relevant activity (investment or underwriting), and removing disclosures on gas and nuclear activities from investment and underwriting templates.
• EIOPA advises against introducing a new Green Insured Activities KPI at this stage due to cost, methodological and data challenges, recommending reconsideration after five years. It also advises against voluntary use of OpEx KPIs by financial institutions and proposes a simplified approach to group reporting.

The Advice has been submitted to the European Commission to support the review of the Taxonomy Disclosures Delegated Act and may inform future legislative amendments.

On 29 October 2026, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published the Final Report on Technical Advice on selected KPIs under the Taxonomy Disclosures Delegated Act, which provides technical advice to the European Commission on simplifying EU Taxonomy reporting requirements while maintaining the relevance, comparability and reliability of disclosures.

Key Takeaways:

• ESMA recommends revising the mandatory OpEx KPI so that it focuses solely on non-capitalised R&D expenditure, while retaining existing materiality reliefs. ESMA does not recommend introducing a prescribed voluntary OpEx+ KPI and proposes safeguards for any voluntary Taxonomy-related disclosures.
• ESMA, together with the other ESAs, recommends not introducing the voluntary use of counterparties’ OpEx KPI in the Taxonomy disclosures of financial undertakings, including asset managers.
• ESMA recommends replacing the current weighted-average group Taxonomy reporting methodology with a parent undertaking-based reporting regime, complemented by simplified disclosures for material secondary businesses. It also proposes a range of additional reporting simplifications, including optional reliefs, cross-references to ESRS disclosures, phased implementation of amendments, clarification of IFRS 8 usage, retention of enabling and transitional activity reporting, and removal of the adjusted turnover KPI for sustainable bonds.

The report has been submitted to the European Commission for consideration as part of the ongoing review of the Taxonomy Disclosures Delegated Act.

On 12 October 2026, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published two thematic notes on clear, fair and non-misleading sustainability-related claims, focusing on impact claims and climate transition claims. The notes are educational in nature and are intended to help market participants communicate sustainability-related information in a consistent, transparent and non-misleading manner, while mitigating greenwashing risks. They do not create new regulatory requirements.

Key takeaways:

• ESMA reminds market participants that sustainability claims should comply with four overarching principles: they should be accurate, accessible, substantiated and up to date, particularly in non-regulatory communications such as marketing materials and voluntary reporting.
• In relation to impact claims, ESMA stresses the need to clearly explain the intended positive environmental or social impact, distinguish between investee impact and investor impact, clarify additionality where relevant, and support claims with appropriate KPIs, methodologies and reporting.
• In relation to climate transition claims, ESMA emphasises that market participants should clearly communicate their transition ambition, implementation strategy, assumptions, metrics, milestones and progress, including any limitations, updates or deviations from planned targets.

These thematic notes form part of ESMA’s broader work on sustainability-related disclosures and claims and include practical examples of good and poor practices to help market participants ensure that communications are clear, fair and not misleading.

On 27 October 2026, the Institutional Real Estate Investors (INREV) published ESG SDDS: new guidance for EUI and GHG emissions reporting, which provides additional methodological clarifications and practical examples to support the calculation and reporting of Energy Use Intensity (EUI) and GHG emissions under the ESG Standard Data Delivery Sheet (ESG SDDS). The publication states that existing ESG SDDS KPIs, definitions and reporting requirements remain unchanged.

Key Takeaways:

• The guidance has been integrated into the ESG SDDS Wiring Guide and provides further clarification on reporting total area (ESG1.6), including floor area methodology, treatment of acquisitions and disposals, and consistency between floor area and related energy data.
• The guidance clarifies the calculation and reporting of actual and estimated energy consumption, including operational control considerations, treatment of EV charging and on-site renewable energy, and methodologies for estimating missing energy data.

The guidance provides additional clarification on energy intensity (EUI) and Scope 1 GHG emissions, including reporting boundaries, methodology consistency, scope allocation, emission factor selection and disclosure, and treatment of fugitive emissions.

INREV announced an online briefing on 17 November 2026 to discuss implementation, reporting experiences, challenges and lessons learned related to the new guidance.