At the urging of the G-20, the Basel Committee has overhauled the prudential framework for financial market participants. In December 2009 it published two papers – one on capital requirements, the other on liquidity risk management – and put them out to consultation.

ICSA held its 23rd annual general meeting in Istanbul from 10 to 13 May. AMAFI was represented by its Chief Executive, Pierre de Lauzun, and its European and International Affairs Advisor, Véronique Donnadieu. The first part of the meeting was organised as a public conference on the theme of "Global Financial Regulations in the Aftermath of the Crisis", with presentations by a number of personalities and high ranking officials.

CESR issued on 1 April 2010 a call for evidence on micro-structural issues in Europe 's equity markets. The aim was to determine how the accelerating pace of technological developments such as high-frequency trading, co-location and sponsored access could affect the structure of secondary equity markets in Europe .

Since market abuse is no longer a question for organised markets alone, CESR's member regulators have decided to extend their transaction reporting requirements to over-the-counter derivatives if the underlying asset is traded on a regulated market.

CESR launched a consultation on proposals to extend major shareholding notifications to "instruments of similar economic effect to holding shares and entitlements to acquire shares". Responding, the Amafi Major Holdings Group pointed to the needlessly short seven-week consultation period.

Autorité de Contrôle Prudentiel (ACP), a new supervisory authority, came into being officially on 9 March 2010 when its board met for the first time. The creation of the ACP was prompted by the Economic Modernisation Act, passed in August 2008, which allowed the government to reform the oversight of the banking and insurance industries.

The European Commission has initiated a debate on how to regulate post-trade activities. Regulation has become a key aim for the Commission, which is learning lessons both from the financial crisis and from the failure of the prevailing free-market ethos epitomised by the Code of Conduct on Clearing and Settlement.

As part of government-led discussions on fundraising by medium sized companies, a working group was set up in November 2009 under the umbrella of the Directorate General of the Treasury and Monetary Policy to make near-term proposals on independent investment research. Amafi's representative on the group is Eric Le Boulch, a member of its executive board and chairman of CM-CIC Securities.

The Self-Regulatory Organisations Consultative Committee (SROCC) of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) held its first interim meeting on Thursday 14 January in London . This was followed the next day by an interim meeting of the International Council of Securities Associations (ICSA).

Revision of the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID), which came into effect in November 2007 after seven years of intense preparation, has been under debate for several months. Revisiting the directive is now a priority for the European Commission in view of widespread dissatisfaction with the structure of Europe 's equity markets.

Executive Order 2010-76 on the merger of the supervisory and licensing authorities for the banking and insurance sectors was adopted on 21 January 2010. Eagerly awaited following cross-industry work on this issue, the merger is a major reform that will create a new independent administrative authority with no legal personality, Autorité de Contrôle Prudentiel (ACP).

Further to the G-20 summit in Pittsburgh , the French government has tabled a bill on banking and financial regulation with the main aim of enhancing supervision of financial markets and firms.

Following the European Council meeting on 18 and 19 June and the release of the Larosière report, the European Commission published at end September a proposal for a Regulation establishing Europe's new system of financial regulation and supervision. In terms of microprudential supervision, the three Level 3 committees currently responsible for securities (CESR), banking (CEBS) and insurance (CEIOPS) have become European Supervisory Authorities with extended powers.

As a member of the European Forum of Securities Associations (EFSA), Amafi responded to a call for evidence from CESR on a short selling disclosure regime. EFSA stressed the importance of not banning short sales under normal market conditions. It argued that setting up a market transparency system would be counterproductive and that, if a regulatory disclosure regime were to be introduced, it ought to be organised on a Europe-wide basis.

Plans to overhaul supervision of the banking and insurance industries in France , set out in legislation passed in August 2008, have been discussed extensively since the release of an official report on financial supervision in January 2009.

The process of transposing the Third Money Laundering Directive into the French regulatory framework is nearing completion. On 2 November, CRBF Regulation 97-02 on internal control in credit institutions and investment firms was amended to incorporate measures aimed at preventing money laundering and terrorist financing.

In response to the Communication on European financial supervision published by the European Commission on 27 May 2009 (AMAFI / 09-46), Amafi fully endorsed the proposed guidelines but urged the Commission to adopt a broader, medium- to long-term view. It stressed that the political goal of integrating financial services would not be fully achieved unless supervisory practices were integrated in parallel.

The International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) held its 34th annual conference in Tel Aviv from 8 to 11 June 2009. IOSCO’s Self-Regulatory Organisations Consultative Committee (SROCC), of which Amafi is a member, held its own annual meeting at the same time. Amafi, represented by Chief Executive Pierre de Lauzun and European and International Affairs Advisor Véronique Donnadieu, also attended meetings between industry representatives and regulators.

Responding to IOSCO’s consultation on “Unregulated Financial Markets and Products”, Amafi concentrated chiefly on measures for regulating securitisation and credit derivatives (AMAFI  / 09-36).

Amafi responded to the European Commission consultation on initiatives to enhance the resilience of over-the-counter derivatives markets. It endorsed the Commission’s proposals, which include the standardisation and use of clearinghouses and central depositaries and greater price transparency, but emphasised that the future regulatory framework for OTC derivatives should be tailored to and commensurate with each product or market (AMAFI  / 09-53).

Ms Catherine Langlais (NYSE-Euronext) and Mr Gilles Aupin, (Louis Capital Markets), new members of the Board.

The European Commission is consulting on how to improve the supervision of financial services. This follows the publication at end-February 2009 of the Larosière Group report on financial supervision in the European Union and a Communication in early March, "Driving the European Recovery", in which the Commission approved the Group ' s fundamental principles and urged European leaders to do likewise.

The issue of pay in the financial industry has recently been addressed not only by the G20 but also at European and domestic levels.

From the outset, the crisis has underscored the need to prevent systemic risk and respond to concerns about the solvency of financial institutions. One of the key issues is the creation of a clearinghouse for credit derivatives, in particular credit default swaps (CDS).

The Deposit Guarantee Directive (94/19/EC) was amended in March 2009 to harmonise the levels of guarantee, which have been set at €50,000 with immediate effect, rising to €100,000 as from 1 January 2011.

The Larosière Expert Group on Financial Supervision released its report on 25 February, setting out 31 recommendations to strengthen the supervision and stability of the EU’s financial institutions and markets. 

The European Commission has consulted on proposed amendments to the Prospectus Directive with a view to meeting the target of a 25% cut in administrative costs arising from EU legislation by 2012 and to improving and simplifying enforcement of the directive. Amafi's Corporate Finance Committee examined the Commission's proposals with interest.

Transparency in the markets for corporate bonds, structured finance products and credit derivatives was the subject of a consultation initiated by CESR in early 2009. The aim was to determine whether greater transparency was needed as a result of the financial crisis.

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AMAFI took part in the interim meetings of the International Council of Securities Associations (ICSA) and of the Self-Regulatory Organisations Consultative Committee (SROCC) of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) in Washington   DC in December 2008. The association was represented by Pierre de Lauzun , Chief Executive, and Véronique Donnadieu , Head of European and International Affairs.

Former Banque de France governor Jacques de Larosière was asked by the President of the European Commission in November 2008 to lead a high level expert group on EU financial supervision. The group will formulate recommendations for strengthening European supervisory and stability arrangements in banking, insurance and financial markets by making them more efficient and closely integrated. It was set up in accordance with the ECOFIN roadmaps of November 2007 and April 2008, which called on the European Commission to explore ways of improving financial supervision in Europe .

CESR on 9 January completed the final phase of its consultation on the implementation of the Market Abuse Directive. AMAFI carefully examined the consultation paper, which dealt with the policy settings for stabilisation, share buybacks and inside information. It welcomes the fact that sales of securities under stabilisation programmes are not considered as market abuse (AMAFI / 09-01).

Responding to the CESR consultation on the impact of MiFID on secondary market functioning (AMAFI / 09-03), AMAFI painted a contrasting picture. It stressed, however, that its analysis needed to be corroborated because the procedures had been in place for only a year. Moreover, some of the disruptions it had identified were caused by the crisis affecting financial markets and the economy at large. AMAFI's main findings are. 

AMAFI issues a document (AMAFI 08-51) on “Reforming the global financial system, analysis and proposals by Association française des marchés financiers”

The European Commission launched a consultation in June on possible amendments to the decisions establishing the three Level 3 Committees: CESR, CEBS and CEIOPS. The goal is to harmonise, clarify and strengthen their powers in the fields of supervisory convergence and cooperation, and to give them a role in monitoring financial stability, particularly in risk analysis.

The European Commission began a consultation in July on proposals for a directive or regulation to organise the authorisation, operation and supervision of credit rating agencies (CRAs).

AMAFI took part in two commodities consultations over the summer.

The Economic Modernisation Act (“loi de modernisation de l’économie”) No 2008-776 of 4 August 2008 was published in France ’s Official Journal on 5 August 2008 . AMAFI distributed a memo to its members informing them about the main provisions of the law that affect them. Two, in particular, deserve to be singled out.

AFEI changes its name to AMAFI - Association française des marchés financiers - to reflect a broader remit.

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Organised by the Securities Houses Compliance Officers Group (SHCOG), The European Compliance Conference (TECC) took place in Dublin on 24 and 25 April. With a distinguished panel of speakers, the event drew 160 compliance officers and legal experts from European banks and law firms. AFEI was represented by Compliance Director Stéphanie Hubert.

CESR published a questionnaire on the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) on 11 April 2008. The stated aim of the MiFID Q&A was to provide market participants with practical answers to facilitate effective implementation of the new arrangements.

Delegates from AFEI and the London Investment Banking Association (LIBA) made an official visit to Washington  DC from 6 to 10 April to meet with key talking partners actively involved in financial market oversight.

The European Central Bank launched a public consultation in December 2007 on the implementation of Target 2 Securities (T2S), a proposed platform for the cross-border and domestic settlement of securities against central bank money.

The European Forum of Securities Associations (EFSA) was launched in January 2007 by AFEI, ASSOSSIM ( Italy ), LIBA (UK) and SSDA ( Sweden ) as a forum to address common issues affecting financial market participants throughout Europe .

The International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) is holding its 33rd annual conference in Paris from 26 to 29 May 2008.

AFEI responded to an AMF consultation last autumn on a proposal to open a segment of the regulated market reserved for professional investors (AFEI / 07-51). Despite supporting the proposal wholeheartedly from the outset, AFEI noted that it highlighted some constraints inherent in the French system of public offerings of securities. In light of the context created by the Prospectus Directive, these restrictions are distorting competition to the detriment of French issuers.

Some sections of the general regulations of the French securities regulator, the AMF, which stem from transposition of MiFID and were approved by an executive order on 15 May 2007, state explicitly that the associated implementation measures will be set forth in an AMF Instruction. The provisions in question concern the compliance function, a definition of personal transactions, client due diligence, and client categorisation (with a definition of "significant size" in the context of financial instrument transactions).

AFEI has been approached informally by the Treasury and Monetary Policy Directorate (DGTPE) on draft legislation for transposing the Third Money Laundering Directive*. At an initial meeting in early December 2007, AFEI restated its positions (AFEI / 07-26) and made some initial comments on the text of the bill. It also called for a full-scale public consultation.

The three Level 3 Committees, CESR, CEBS and CEIOPS, have put forward proposals for improving the Lamfalussy process, in light of the final report of the Inter-Institutional Monitoring Group (IIMG) tasked with assessing the overall framework. The proposals, which are consistent with the findings of the IIMG, basically aim to strengthen the Committees ' powers by increasing their funding and giving legal force to their decisions.

The Committee of European Securities Regulators (CESR) put its 2008 Level 3 work programme out to consultation in early November. On the whole, AFEI approves the high priority afforded by CESR to the work areas outlined in the programme. However, in its response ( AFEI / 07-55), it pointed out the urgent need for CESR to pay special attention to the scope of investment advice in the wholesale field.

The European Commission 's Code of Conduct for clearing and settlement infrastructures entered its second phase – access and interoperability – in July 2007. Since then, the number of interoperability requests has risen, especially for France 's infrastructures, Euronext and LCH.Clearnet SA.

The French securities regulator, the AMF, launched a consultation in October 2007 on a draft amendment to its General Regulation intended to allow the market operator to open a segment of the regulated market especially for admissions without a prior public offering.

The Committee of European Banking Supervisors (CEBS) launched a consultation in June 2007 on national options under the Capital Requirements Directive (CRD). The consultation was organised at the request of the European Commission, which is seeking closer regulatory harmonisation across Europe by determining which of the CRD's one-hundred of so national options can be eliminated and which should be maintained or established as a general rule.

The Inter-Institutional Monitoring Group (IIMG) published its third and final report on the Lamfalussy Process on 15 October 2007 . Comprising six independent experts, including Pierre de Lauzun, the IIMG is tasked with assessing the progress made on implementation, identifying any emerging bottlenecks, and proposing concrete recommendations for improving the overall process.

The International Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) held the annual conference of its Technical Committee in Tokyo on 8 and 9 November 2007. It also appointed a new general secretary, Greg Tanzer ( Australia), who will take over from Philippe Richard ( France) in January 2008.

The Board of AFEI elected Philippe Tibi, President of UBS Securities France SA, as Chairman of the Association. Christian Carcassonne remains Honorary Chairman.

AFEI is a founder member of the European Forum of Securities Associations (EFSA), which responded to a consultation organised by the three EU Level 3 committees (3L3): CESR*, CEBS** and CEIOPS***. The consultation, covering the committees' impact assessment guidelines, is part of the broader-based Better Regulation initiative launched by the European Commission.

As an affiliate member of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), AFEI led an initiative to form a working group on self-regulation, as part of IOSCO's Self Regulatory Organizations Consultative Committee. Chaired by Pierre de Lauzun, the group will meet for the first time in early October.

The board of the Futures Industry Association (FIA ) unanimously approved AFEI  's application for associate membership at its meeting on 7 June. FIA is the international organisation representing professionals in the derivatives markets. It is a key source of information and a forum for cooperation at worldwide level.

AFEI is still working on issues related to the best execution requirement under the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID). Following a consultation organised by the Committee of European Securities Regulators (AFEI / 07-20), Level 3 recommendations are due out in June.

The International Council of Securities Associations (ICSA) held its 20th Annual General Meeting in Toronto (Canada) from 13 to 15 May.

Prompted by the fall-out from the Parmalat affair in 2003, IOSCO published an informal consultation paper in July 2006 on managing the conflicts of interest that arise in securities offerings.

The International Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) has announced that it intends to work more closely with the industry and has put its work programme out for consultation.