Uitdagingen voor de AFM vragen om aanpassingen in wetgeving

To effectively oversee the changing society and financial sector, the AFM is requesting several modifications to Dutch legislation, outlined in the annual legislative letter sent to Ministers Kaag (Finance) and Schouten (Poverty Policy, Participation, and Pensions).
Laura van Geest, AFM’s CEO, explained their legislative requests this year revolve around three themes: alignment with European legislation, effectiveness and efficiency of supervision, and a level playing field across regulatory domains.
The key points are:
– Digitalization, internationalization, and sustainability are key trends outlined in AFM’s 2023-2026 strategy. These trends are mirrored in new European legislation, significantly impacting AFM’s oversight. Digitalization prompts new European laws like the MiCA, the DORA, and the Artificial Intelligence Regulation. Internationalization of financial markets brings opportunities as well as risks. Sustainability also significantly influences financial markets and their supervision. New regulations aim to enhance disclosure of sustainability risks and performance, exemplified by the upcoming Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD)
– Aligning with European Legislation
To align with European regulations, AFM urges the Finance Minister to provide a public law basis for supervising both financial and non-financial reporting, in light of new sustainability reporting. AFM also seeks the same enforcement tools for sustainability-related violations as for other domains, like financial reporting. Additionally, AFM desires oversight of issuing entities adhering to reporting requirements for sustainable investments under the Taxonomy Regulation, based on the Financial Reporting Supervision Act.
Due to the MiCA, AFM requests authority over crypto asset services, akin to financial services, under the Consumer Protection Enforcement Act
– Emphasis on efficient and effective supervision
AFM proposes expanding the „commitment“ enforcement tool alongside the Finance Minister. A commitment entails a company pledging to adjust practices to prevent further enforcement action. AFM finds its supervision of outsourcings by financial service providers less effective due to limited current outsourcing regulations. Thus, AFM advocates for updated outsourcing rules in the Financial Supervision Decree for financial institutions
– Ensuring a level playing field across regulatory domains
AFM seeks to remove the triennial assessment of executives of companies in the Caribbean Netherlands. The value of this assessment is limited and contradicts the goal of promoting a level playing field. AFM also asks the Minister Schouten to include a reporting obligation for pension service providers in the Pension Act, should they fail to timely, clearly, correctly, and fairly inform participants. Current voluntary reporting by providers to AFM disadvantages them. AFM deems a comprehensive market vulnerability overview vital
– Legislative priorities for 2022 include whistleblower rewards and simulated purchases
Lastly, AFM highlights two requests from the 2022 Legislative Letter. AFM seeks a legal basis for awarding whistleblower rewards to those reporting market abuse violations. They also want the ability to conduct simulated purchases („pseudokoop“) using fictitious identities.
The legislative letter, along with requests from De Nederlandsche Bank, has been submitted to the Dutch Parliament.