On April 3, MFA submitted a joint MFA-AIMA response to the ESMA Consultation Paper on Third-Country Access under MiFID/MiFIR. The letter recommends that ESMA keep reasonable and proportionate the reporting requirements for firms intending to rely on the third-country access provisions in MiFID/MiFIR so that they do not unintentionally serve as an administrative barrier to the use of the equivalence regime. In particular, the letter explains that the proposed registration and reporting requirements seem more onerous than other standard reporting requirements and suggests a reduction in certain information, notes that some reporting elements seem not to be aligned with ESMA’s Level 1 mandate, and encourages ESMA to provide an additional analysis of costs to be incurred by firms in its cost-benefit analysis.
