Grant Lee (pictured), asset management partner at PwC, comments on the EC’s announcement that it is considering a year-long delay to Mifid II…
Our asset management clients will be grateful for the potential reprieve should the European Commission decide to delay the current go-live date of 3 January 2017 for MiFIDII and MiFIR following ESMA's recommendation.
The potential changes required by the Directive and Regulation are immense and with key text still outstanding, embedding the wholesale changes during 2016 is a massive stretch for the industry.
This is before considering and working through the secondary impacts for asset managers from interaction with sell side firms. As the industry remains on tenterhooks, the timing of an announcement from the European Commission will be key, as the value of a delay erodes the longer it takes. If the delay were to be granted in mid-2016 this would be too late for most – firms are seeking clarification now on their timetables and deliverables. Until the European Commission officially announce a delay we will continue to work with our clients towards the 3 January 2017 implementation date.
