The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published a consultation paper on the conditions of the active account requirement (AAR) under the revised European Market Infrastructure Regulation (EMIR 3.0). The timing of the consultation, which has come before the publication of EMIR 3.0 in the EU official journal, is acknowledged as “exceptional”, necessitated by the tight deadline ESMA is under to submit draft regulatory technical standards (RTS) within six months of the entry into force of EMIR 3.0.
The consultation seeks to gather feedback on key aspects of the AAR, including the three operational conditions to ensure that the clearing account is effectively active and functional, representativeness obligation for the most active counterparties, and reporting requirements to assess those counterparties’ compliance with the AAR.
The AAR has been a highly debated topic within the industry over the course of this year. Nevertheless, it is considered a strategy to “address the financial stability risks caused by EU clearing members and clients being exposed to systemically important third-country central counterparties”.
The deadline for submitting responses to the consultation is 27 January 2025.
