Many firms outside the EU, based in “third countries”, are in the process of understanding if and how MiFID II applies to them. One concept which makes compliance for such companies easier is that of “regulatory equivalence”, where a third country regulatory regime is recognised as equivalent, which lowers the barriers for third country firms. This article by George Bollenbacher of Capital Markets Advisors, posted on the Tabb Forum, investigates the status of such recognition, and highlights the difficulty in finding out appropriate information.

With the countdown to “Brexit” underway, many of these issues will also need to be considered from a UK perspective as the date approaches. It remains to be seen how the UK will approach becoming a third country to the European Union, although the FCA recently alluded to Brexit in their “business plan” documents (see here).