EU Market Abuse Regulation 2016 – Implications for EU and Non-EU Investment Managers

• Attempted insider dealing and market manipulation will itself constitute an offence; and
• The use of inside information by cancelling or amending an order to which the information relates (or attempting to do so), where the order was placed before the person came into possession of the inside information, will also be caught within the insider dealing prohibition.

In addition, in order to address the recent focus by national regulators on algorithmic trading and high frequency trading, MAR provides that certain electronic trading activities (in effect, quote stuffing, layering and spoofing) that have the effects of giving false or misleading signals to the market or which distort market prices “shall ... be considered as market manipulation.”

Implications and Action Points to Consider

• Attempted insider dealing and market manipulation would cover situations where, for example, an order was placed or misleading information was intended to be disseminated, but ultimately did not occur because of a technical fault.
• In relation to cancelling or amending orders, Recital (25) of MAR provides that there should be a rebuttable presumption that “any subsequent change relating that information to orders placed before possession of such information, including the cancellation or amendment of an order, or an attempt to cancel or amend an order constitutes insider dealing.”
• Non-EU investment managers will have to consider whether their local laws might in fact require them to cancel or amend orders upon the receipt of inside information and determine how to address the conflict in non-EU vs EU requirements.
• Finally, on the issue of algorithmic and high frequency trading (both of which terms refer to the equivalent definitions in MiFID II), it would appear that an offence of market manipulation would be committed even where there was no intention on the part of the relevant firm, for example, where a faulty algorithm resulted in quote stuffing or layering. Given the breadth of the definition of algorithmic trading, investment managers may wish to review and update their systems and controls to address the regulatory risk introduced by the express reference to such trading in MAR.

Market Soundings

Although wall-crossing is widely practised and there is a general market understanding of the process, MAR for the first time introduces a specific regime for “market soundings.” This is defined in MAR to mean “the communication of information, prior to the announcement of a transaction, in order to gauge the interest of potential investors in a possible transaction ...”

The market sounding regime in MAR provides a safe harbour to the offence of unlawful disclosure of inside information for “disclosing market participants” (DMPs) (e.g., brokers/sell-side firms), provided DMPs adhere to procedural, disclosure and record-keeping requirements set out in ESMA’s technical standards.

Importantly, MAR provides that ESMA is to issue guidelines addressed to “market sounding recipients” (MSRs) (e.g., investment managers/buy-side firms), regarding the factors that MSRs are to take into account when information is disclosed to them as part of a market sounding, the steps that MSRs are to take if inside information has been disclosed to them and the records that MSRs are to maintain in order to demonstrate that they have complied the prohibitions on insider dealing and the unlawful disclosure of inside information.

ESMA is in the process of finalising its market sounding guidelines for MSRs. While some of the proposals for MSRs set out in ESMA’s draft guidelines (the “Draft Guidelines”)⁸ reflect current standard market practice, a few of the proposals are quite onerous for MSRs.⁹ It is possible that the final guidelines might not be published until after July 3, 2016 (i.e., after the date from which MAR applies).

Under the Draft Guidelines, a MSR would be expected, among other things, to:

• Have a designated contact person at the MSR to receive market soundings;
• Assess independently whether it (the MSR) has received inside information from the DMP as a result of the market sounding, and consider whether the MSR agrees with the DMP’s opinion that inside information has or has not been disclosed to the MSR. Where the MSR disagrees with the DMP’s opinion, there are certain situations in which the MSR should inform the DMP, and certain other situations in which the MSR should refrain from informing the DMP. A similar process applies where the DMP informs the MSR that the inside information provided is no longer inside information, i.e. the information has been cleansed;
• In the case of unrecorded meetings or telephone conversations, the MSR is to sign and agree the DMP’s written minutes of the meeting or conversation, or provide their own version to the DMP within five working days after the market sounding;
• Establish internal procedures to manage and control the flow of inside information and ensure internal training of staff on the internal procedures and prohibitions on insider dealing and the unlawful disclosure of inside information;
• Draw up a list of staff possessing information passed during a market sounding;
• Identify all issuers and financial instruments to which the relevant inside information relates; and
• Keep records of all matters relating to the above for a period of five years. 

Implications and Action Points to Consider

• The Draft Guidelines are stated to apply to all MSRs; that is, regardless of whether the MSR is a regulated or non-regulated firm, and regardless of location. For example, a U.S. investment manager receiving a market sounding from a U.S. broker in respect of a U.S.NASDAQ-listed issuer whose securities also happen to be admitted to trading on an EU MTF would be an MSR subject to the Draft Guidelines.
• Although ESMA guidelines do not have the force of law, i.e., are not legally binding on the industry, compliance with the guidelines would help an MSR in demonstrating compliance with MAR. Investment managers, regardless of regulatory status and location, will thus need to consider putting in place internal systems and procedures to address the points raised by the Draft Guidelines.
• In relation to the obligation to draw up a list of staff possessing information passed during a market sounding, note that the technical requirements applying to the form and content of “insider lists” for issuers and persons acting on their behalf do not apply to MSRs.
• Given the requirement for the MSR to sign the DMP’s minutes of unrecorded meetings or telephone conversations, or provide the MSR’s own version of the minutes, MSRs may be inclined to have market soundings carried out in recorded telephone lines so as to reduce the administrative burden of reviewing minutes or drafting their own. Such recorded calls would need to be stored for a period of five years.
• Given the explicit reference to staff training on market abuse and the focus of regulators on the proper handling of inside information,¹⁰ firms may wish to review and update their existing training programmes to address the new expectations under MAR for MSRs.

Suspicious Transaction and Order Reports (STOR)

Under MAR, any person “professionally arranging or executing transactions”¹¹ in financial instruments will be required to establish and maintain effective arrangements, systems and procedures to detect and report suspicious orders and transactions.¹² The STOR obligation extends to OTC derivative transactions. Importantly, unlike MAD which contains a suspicious transaction reporting regime, MAR extends the regime to include not only transactions, but orders as well. In addition, MAR captures not only actual orders and transactions, but also cancellations and modifications of such orders and transactions.

STORs are to be submitted to the relevant regulator “without delay ... once reasonable suspicion of actual or attempted insider dealing or market manipulation is formed.”

ESMA has stated in its Final Report for the relevant MAR technical standards on STOR¹³ that “[f]or the large majority of entities, the most effective form of surveillance would indeed involve automated systems which generate alerts.” However, ESMA acknowledges that automated systems should not be mandatory for every entity, “if another form of surveillance is more appropriate and effective.” Regardless of the system used, there must be an element of “human analysis” in the detection of orders and transactions.

Finally, records of every report submitted (and the reasons for any order or transaction examined but not subsequently reported) should be maintained for five years.

Implications and Action Points to Consider

• Unlike some of the other obligations under MAR, the STOR obligation appears to apply only to EU firms, since the report must be made in accordance with the rules of notification in the EU Member State in which the firm is registered or has its head office.
• ESMA has confirmed in its MAR Q&A that the STOR obligation applies not only to MiFID firms, but also to AIFMs, UCITs and proprietary traders.
• Firms will need to consider updating their internal policies, procedures, systems and arrangements to comply with the STOR requirements. In particular, firms will need to consider whether to use automated surveillance systems. The technical standards provide that, at the regulator’s request, firms will need to demonstrate the appropriateness of their systems in relation to the scale, size and nature of their business activity, including information on the “level of automation put in place in such systems.”
• The technical standards drafted by ESMA allow for a firm to delegate to a group affiliate the monitoring, detection and identification of orders and transactions that could constitute insider dealing or market manipulation. Firms may wish to consider if that is an option for them, but it should be noted that the delegating firm remains fully responsible for discharging the STOR obligation.

Conclusion

Investment managers and other market participants, regardless of location, will need to consider their potential obligations under MAR and, in particular, ensure their systems and controls adequately protect against the risk of market abuse. As recent enforcement actions have demonstrated, it is not necessary for market abuse to have actually been committed in order for enforcement action to be taken.¹⁴ Non-EU firms will also need to be familiar with the EU market abuse regime. All firms may wish to consider implementing training programmes for their staff on the new MAR framework.