ESMA Grants a Transitional Period

According to MiFID II (Markets in Financial Instruments Directive) and MiFIR (Markets in Financial Instruments Regulation) all counter parties of securities transactions in the EU must have an LEI, as of 3 January 2018. This applies to legal entities and entities qualifying for an LEI, respectively. Yesterday, ESMA has issued a statement that securities service providers will be exempt from the LEI obligation until 30 June 2018 if certain conditions are fulfilled. One of the conditions is that a securities company is provided by its customers with the required documents that will allow it to apply for an LEI on behalf of its customers.

The ESMA statement of 20 December 2017 can be found here.

The Börsen-Zeitung article of 21 December 2017 on the transitional period can be here.