In January 2019, we confirmed that we will become the UK regulator of Trade Repositories (TRs)[1] after Brexit. This information is only applicable if the UK leaves the EU without a withdrawal agreement (a no-deal scenario).
Any TR wishing to offer its services in the UK will need to be registered with, or recognised by us.
The Trade Repositories (Amendment and Transitional Provision) (EU Exit) Regulations 2018[2] provides:
- a conversion regime for UK based TRs who have an ESMA registration and want to keep a presence in the UK
- a temporary registration regime for UK legal entities that are part of the same group as a TR with an existing ESMA registration
The Regulations also give us powers to process advance applications to ensure a smooth transition to the new regime for UK TRs. We are now in the advanced stages of preparations with TRs who wish to offer services under the UK regime. This will ensure UK TRs are registered and operational from exit day.
Reporting Counterparties
UK reporting counterparties must ensure they are connected to a registered, or recognised, UK TR in order to fulfil their reporting obligations from Exit day under draft The Over the Counter Derivatives, Central Counterparties and Trade Repositories (Amendment, etc., and Transitional Provision) (EU Exit) Regulations 2018[3]. We encourage UK reporting counterparties to continue engagement with their TRs on their Brexit contingency planning. A list of UK TRs will be made available on the FCA webpage ahead of Exit day.
ESMA statement
ESMA has published a statement on 1 February 2019[4] (PDF) clarifying certain areas relating to derivatives reported under the European Market Infrastructure Regulation (EMIR) in the case of a no-deal Brexit.
ESMA’s statement is directed at the obligations TRs and reporting counterparties must meet under the EU regime before and after exit day. We are considering this statement further to determine whether additional clarification is required for UK reporting counterparties and UK TRs who will become subject to our supervision after Exit day.
Next steps
We expect to publish our detailed guidance relating to the UK regime shortly. This will cover both the obligations of UK TRs and UK reporting counterparties, and will seek to minimise potential disruption for market participants.