[ESMA35-36-2819 ] Final Report on the Review of the ITS on cooperation in supervisory activities under MiFID II

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has released a Final Report on a “Review of the ITS on cooperation in supervisory activities under MiFID II“.
The report outlines the need for competent authorities to cooperate and exchange information in an efficient and timely manner for the purposes of Directive 2014/65/EU, which sets out obligations for such cooperation. The European Commission previously published implementing regulation (EU) 2017/980 laying down implementing technical standards regarding standard forms, templates, and procedures for such cooperation, but there were instances where improvements could be made to better help national competent authorities (NCAs) fulfill their supervisory objectives through cooperation.
The report notes the continued increase in cross-border activities in investment services across the EU to retail clients, resulting from the development of the single market and the digitalization of financial services. This increase in cross-border services has clear benefits for consumers and investment firms, as it fosters competition and expands the market. However, these developments require NCAs to increase their focus on the supervision of cross-border activities and on cooperation, or it risks undermining investors‘ trust and backfiring on the achievement of the single market.
To facilitate a more expeditious exchange among competent authorities, the revised technical standards introduce clear deadlines for responses both to urgent and non-urgent requests for information. The existing ITS does not set specific procedures for and to reply to urgent and non-urgent requests for cooperation or exchange of information. Only limited differences are made in the existing ITS between non-urgent and urgent requests. The revised ITS distinguish between urgent and non-urgent requests and introduce clear deadlines to respond to each.