8 August 2022 - New CAA Circular 22/15

The Commissariat aux Assurances (CAA) recently published a new circular letter (Lettre Circulaire 22/15 du Commissariat aux Assurances) regarding the roles and responsibilities of the Board of (re)insurance undertakings and any holding companies under their supervision.

4 August 2022 - CSSF gives additional clarification on investment funds reports foreseen by Circular 21/790

On 22 July 2022, the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) published additional clarifications for the completion/submission of investment funds reports foreseen by Circular CSSF 21/790.

25 July 2022 - The EU’s Digital Operational Resilience Act has been agreed: implications for the financial services sector

EU negotiators have now reached a full technical agreement on the DORA package. A few months of administrative process are left before the DORA will be published in the EU Official Journal (OJ)1, but the full text of the agreement has now been published by the European Parliament and FS firms need to begin assessing what it means for them.

22 July 2022 - Swiss Climate Scores

On 29 June 2022, as part of its ambition to position the Swiss financial center as an international leader in credible climate transparency, the Swiss Federal Council launched the Swiss Climate Scores.

7 July 2022 - European legislators have agreed on a landmark law regulating crypto assets: Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) Regulation

On 30 June 2022, the European Parliament and Council reached a provisional agreement on the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) Regulation.

7 July 2022 - EU strikes a deal on “travel rule” for crypto-asset transfers

On 29 June 2022, the European Parliament and Council reached a provisional agreement on a new bill, aiming to ensure that crypto transfers involving EU-supervised crypto-asset service providers (CASPs) can always be traced and suspicious transactions blocked.

28 June 2022 - AML/CTF obligations of RAIFs

Recently, the Luxembourg government – Administration de l’Enregistrement, des Domaines et de la TVA (“AED”) published a guide to provide RAIFs with a better understanding of regulatory expectations regarding Anti-Money Laundering and Counter the Financing of Terrorism (“AML/CFT”) obligations applicable to RAIFs.

3 June 2022 - DLT Pilot regime released: how EU is preparing for tomorrow’s digital securities market

On 2 June 2022, Regulation 2022/858 of the European Parliament and of the Council on a pilot regime for market infrastructures based on distributed ledger technology was published in the Official Journal of the European Union (DLT Pilot Regime).

1 June 2022 - UCI Administration CSSF 22/811 circular: The UCI all in one toolbox

On May 16, the CSSF issued a much-awaited circular on the Undertakings for Collective Investment (UCI) schemes.

31 May 2022 - EMIR – Annual calculation for Non-Financial and Financial counterparties – 17 June 2022

European Market Infrastructure Regulation (EMIR) REFIT (Regulation 2019/834) entered into force on June 17, 2019.

25 April 2022 - CSSF releases its Outsourcing Circular

The long-awaited Outsourcing Circular which implements the EBA’s Guidelines on Outsourcing is published with a further extension of application.

12 April 2022 - Investment fund reports of Circular CSSF 21/790 now available in eDesk

On 22 December 2021, the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) published Circular 21/790 (“the Circular”) that introduced new regulatory reporting obligations for Undertakings for Collective Investments (UCIs).

17 March 2022 - Digital Finance: European Parliament adopts MiCA Regulation, paving the way for an innovation-friendly crypto regulation

Markets in Crypto-assets (MiCA) Regulation, introduced in 2020, provides a sound legal framework for crypto-asset markets to develop within the EU by clearly defining the regulatory treatment of crypto-assets that are not covered by existing financial services legislation.

18 February 2022 - Luxembourg moves ahead with its updated Securitization Law

On 9 February 2022, the Luxembourg parliament has approved a new law amending the Law of 22 March 2004, which will enter into force after publication in the Official Journal (the Law).

27 January 2022 - The CSSF comes out with its white paper on Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) & Blockchain use in financial services

On 24 January 2022, the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) published a non-binding document in the form of a “white paper” aimed at guiding interested professionals in the conduct of their due diligence process related to the Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) and its use in the provision of services in the Luxembourg financial sector.

21 January 2022 - FinDatEx publishes new version 6 of Solvency II Tripartite Template (TPT)

On 10 January 2022, the Financial Data Exchange Templates (FinDatEx) published a new version of the Solvency II tripartite template (TPT).

23 December 2021 - New CSSF Circulars: introduction and revision of new prudential reporting for IFMs and UCIs

On 22 December 2021, the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) published three new Circulars that introduce new regulatory reporting obligations for investment fund managers (IFMs) and undertakings for collective investments (UCIs).

23 December 2021 - CSSF endorses final revised Guidelines on major incident reporting under PSD2

On 20 December 2021, the CSSF published Circular 21/787, which applies the European Banking Authority’s (EBA) final revised Guidelines on major incident reporting under PSD2 of June 2021 (the “Guidelines").

22 December 2021 - New PRIIPs KID: the long chapter has finally come to an end!

The final extension of the UCITS exemption for PRIIPs and the new PRIIPs RTS are enacted in the Official Journal

29 November 2021 - AIFMD II Proposal is out now! The European Commission published its long-awaited draft to amend the Alternative Investment Funds Directive (AIFMD)

On 25 November 2021, as a 10th anniversary gift, the European Commission published a legislative proposal amending the Alternative Investment Funds Manager Directive (AIFMD—Directive 2011/61/EU) (“the Directive”).

26 November 2021 - MiFID/R III is finally coming

European Commission proposes structural changes to enhance EU capital markets’ transparency and competitiveness.

25 November 2021 - Extension of UCITS exemption for PRIIPs validated by European Parliament

Following an initial vote by the European Parliament's Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON) in October 2021, the European Parliament voted on 23 November 2021 to extend the UCITS exemption and postpone the new PRIIPs Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS) by 6 months.

10 November 2021 - FATF publishes updated guidance on virtual assets to align crypto sector with legacy financial system

On 28 October 2021, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) published “Updated Guidance for a Risk-Based Approach to Virtual Assets (VAs) and Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs)”.

29 October 2021 - Banking package: European Commission publishes proposal on the revised Capital Requirements Directive and Capital Requirements Regulation

On 27 October 2021, the European Commission published a proposal on the revised Capital Requirements Directive and Capital Requirements Regulation (the CRD6/CRR3 package) and the Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive.

21 October 2021 - CSSF replaces prior authorization obligation with prior notification for material IT outsourcing

On 14 October 2021, the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) published Circular CSSF 21/785 (the “Circular”), replacing the prior authorization obligation with a prior notification obligation in the case of material IT outsourcing.

11 October 2021 - International standards for financial market infrastructures to apply to stablecoin arrangements

On 6 October 2021, the Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures (CPMI) and the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) published preliminary guidance (“the Guidance”) for public consultation.

7 October 2021 - Payment statistics (CDDP6) reporting framework—testing platform available from 11 October 2021

On 11 October 2021, the Central Bank of Luxembourg (BCL) will start the testing phase of the CDDP6 reports.

1 October 2021 - The CSSF integrates revised EBA guidelines on ML/TF risk factors into its regulatory approach

On 24 September 2021, by way of Circular 21/782, the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) adopted the European Banking Authority’s (EBA) Revised Guidelines on customer due diligence and risk factors that credit and financial institutions should consider when assessing the money laundering and terrorist financing (ML/TF) risk associated with individual business relationships and occasional transactions (“the Guidelines”).

1 September 2021 - UK Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) sets out its supervisory approach for international banks

In July 2021, the UK Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) published its supervisory statement SS5/21 that should be of great importance for the European banks and investment firms operating in the United Kingdom via a subsidiary or branch.

22 July 2021 - European Commission introduces ambitious measures to enhance the EU's AML/CFT regime

On 20 July 2021, the European Commission presented an anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) package.

22 July 2021 - New reporting framework on payment statistics (CDDP6)

On 15 July 2021, the Central Bank of Luxembourg (BCL) published a new reporting framework for the collection of payment statistics (“CDDP6”). This revised framework concerns all payment servicing institutions and will start with the reference period of January 2022.

12 July 2021 - EBA publishes final revised Guidelines on major incident reporting under PSD2

On 10 June 2021, the European Banking Authority (EBA) published the final revised Guidelines on major incident reporting under PSD2 (EBA/GL/2021/03).

25 June 2021 - New set of Standard Contractual Clauses adopted by European Commission

The Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) are sets of standardized contractual terms, conditions and obligations that aim to ensure the transfer of personal data leaving the EU/EEA complies with the EU’s data privacy laws and requirements.

24 June 2021 - Sustainable finance: CSSF’s guidance on the management of climate-related and environmental risks

On 21 June 2021, the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) published Circular CSSF 21/773, a new guidance on the management of climate-related and environmental risks.

24 June 2021 - Luxembourg amends the securitization law

On 21 May 2021, the Chambre des Députés of Luxembourg published Bill no. 7825 (the Bill) amending the Law of 22 March 2004 on securitization (the Law).

22 June 2021 - The CSSF clarifies important MiFID implications for fund managers

On 10 June 2021, the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) published an FAQ on the application of the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) to investment fund managers (IFMs).

1 June 2021 - Cross-border fund distribution, be ready for August 2021: ESMA finalized its guidance for fund marketing communications

On 27 May 2021, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published its final report on the Guidelines under the Regulation (EU) 2019/1156 on cross-border distribution of funds (CBR), which specify the requirements that funds’ marketing communications must meet. 

28 April 2021 - Extension of UCITS exemption for PRIIPs validated by European Commission

On 3 February 2021, the European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) published the outcome of their discussions on the packaged retail investment and insurance products (PRIIPs) regulation and announced they reached a consensus on the PRIIPs amendments.

23 April 2021 - Digitalization: European Commission’s first legal framework on trustworthy AI

On 21 April 2021, the European Commission (EC) proposed the first-ever Regulation (“AI Regulation”) laying down harmonized rules on artificial intelligence (AI) and amending certain EU legislative acts.

20 April 2021 - Final ESMA report on EMIR and SFTR data quality

On 15 April 2021, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published its final report on the European Markets Infrastructure Regulation (EMIR) and Securities Financing Transactions Regulation (SFTR) data quality.

14 April 2021 - CSSF sets telework requirements for financial sector

On 9 April 2021, the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) published Circular 21/769 regarding governance and security requirements for supervised entities to perform tasks or activities through telework (the “Circular”).

1 April 2021 - ESMA proposes extending MiFIR transaction reporting to management companies providing MiFID services

The reporting requirements of Regulation No 600/2014 on markets in financial instruments (MiFIR) aimed to provide national competent authorities (NCAs) with a complete picture of the market to support their oversight activities by introducing a uniform and standardized EU-wide reporting regime.

25 March 2021 - Sustainable finance: ESAs consult on taxonomy-related sustainability disclosures

On 17 March 2021, the three European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) published a joint consultation paper on draft regulatory technical standards (RTS) regarding the content and presentation of sustainability disclosures under Articles 8(4), 9(6) and 11(5) of the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR).

9 March 2021 - CSSF launches the first phase of ESMA’s CSA on the supervision of costs and fees of UCITS

On 5 March 2021, the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) published a communication regarding the launch of the European Securities and Markets Authority’s (ESMA) Common Supervisory Action (CSA) on the supervision of costs and fees of UCITS.

26 February 2021 - Sustainable Finance: ESAs provide specific guidance on the SFDR application timeline

On 25 February 2021, the European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) published a joint statement on the application of the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR).

25 February 2021 - Investment funds: Reduction of the subscription tax rate for funds investing in sustainable investments

On 17 February 2021, the Administration de l’enregistrement, des domaines et de la TVA (the Administration) published Circular No. 804bis clarifying the new subscription tax rates for undertakings for collective investment (UCIs) or individual compartments of a UCI with multiple compartments.

22 February 2021 - CSSF revised notification form for transmitting NAV calculation errors or investment rule non-compliance

On 18 February 2021, the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) published a revised notification form in accordance with Circular CSSF 02/77. This form is accompanied by an explanatory document that provides further clarification regarding the form and notification process.

19 February 2021 - ESMA publishes final report and draft ITS on information to facilitate cross-border funds distribution

On 1 February 2021, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published its final report and draft of the implementing technical standards (ITS) under Regulation EU/2019/1156 on the facilitation of cross-border distribution of collective investment undertakings.

18 February 2021 - FinDatEx publishes the European MiFID Template version 3.1 (EMT v3.1) compatible with SFDR

On Friday 12 February 2021, FinDatEx validated version 3.1 of the new European Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) template (EMT). Changes from EMT v3 include information related to Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) level 1 requirements for investment funds.

5 February 2021 - The new PRIIPs RTS are finally agreed by the ESAs

On 20 July 2020, the European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) published the outcome of the packaged retail investment and insurance products (PRIIPs) review. Despite the efforts made in the last 18 months, they have up to now failed to agree on the final text.

1 February 2021 - FATF postpones its onsite visit for mutual evaluation of Luxembourg

On 26 January 2021, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) decided to postpone for a second time its Luxembourg onsite visit due to COVID-19. Originally scheduled for June and July 2020, the inspection had already been postponed to March 2021 due to the travel restrictions and lockdown measures in place.

29 January 2021 - It is official: CSDR settlement discipline regime postponed until 1 February 2022

On 27 January 2021, Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2021/70 amending Delegated Regulation (EU) 2018/1229 concerning the regulatory technical standards (RTS) on settlement discipline was published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJ).

27 January 2021 - Luxembourg publishes law of 22 January 2021 on distributed ledger technology and issuance of dematerialized securities

On 22 January 2021, Luxembourg published law of 22 January 2021 on dematerialized securities. This law modifies both the law of 5 April 1993 on the financial sector, as amended and the law of 6 April 2013 on dematerialized securities.

11 January 2021 - CSSF applies the ESMA Guidelines on performance fees in UCITS and certain types of AIFs

On 18 December 2020, the CSSF published the CSSF Circular 20/764 about the Guidelines on performance fees in UCITS and certain types of AIFs. This Circular applies the final Guidelines of ESMA on performance fees published on 5 November 2020.

8 January 2021 - CSSF publishes its expectations on the use of Efficient Portfolio Management techniques (EPM) and securities financing transactions by UCITS

On 18 December 2020, the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) published the results of the Thematic Review on Efficient Portfolio Management – Revenues and Costs/Fees (“the Review”) and of the Frequently Asked Question on the use of Securities Financing Transactions by UCITS.