The revised Markets in Financial Instruments Directive and Markets in Financial Instruments Regulation (MIFID II/MIFIR) were critical elements of the European Union’s (EU) effort to address shortcomings exposed by the financial crisis. Among other things, the framework was aimed at incentivizing the trading of standardized over-the-counter derivatives on exchanges and electronic trading platforms where appropriate, in order to improve transparency and ensure a level playing field between existing trading execution techniques.
These objectives have not entirely been met, and adjustments are required to make rules on data and reporting, transparency and systematic internalisers more effective. In addition, the lack of equivalence decisions for non-EU trading venues, particularly in a post-Brexit environment, could result in market fragmentation.
EU policy-makers are now reviewing MIFID II/MIFIR in light of market developments to determine which legislative adjustments are appropriate. ISDA believes the European Commission should adopt a ‘Refit’ approach, rather than a complete re-write of the legislation. This paper explores five key areas where a recalibration of the rules would be appropriate and would further enable safe, efficient derivatives markets.
Click on the attached PDF to read the full paper.
Documents (1) for Review of the MIFID II/MIFIR Framework
Latest
Transition to Mandatory Central Clearing
US Treasury securities sit at the heart of global financial markets and serve as one of the primary forms of high-quality collateral across derivatives and securities financing markets. The transition to mandatory central clearing of US Treasuries therefore has implications...
ISDA Publishes Updated ISDA SIMM Governance
ISDA has published an updated version of the ISDA SIMM® Governance Framework, which sets out the principles under which the ISDA Standard Initial Margin Model® operates and the process through which it will be reviewed and amended on a consistent...
ISDA Response to PRA IMA Consultation
On September 18, ISDA, the Association for Financial Markets in Europe, the Institute of International Finance and UK Finance submitted a joint response to the UK Prudential Regulation Authority consultation on adjustments to the internal model approach (IMA) for the...
Calibration Test – IQ September 2026
Calibrating capital requirements is a highly complex undertaking and getting it wrong can have serious consequences. Too much lenience might lead to banks holding insufficient capital to mitigate their risks. But excess conservatism can put balance sheets under strain, forcing...