Singapore and EU adopt equivalence decision for derivatives trading venues

Singapore firms will be able to use EU’s trading platforms and vice versa.

The European Commission has recognised a number of Singapore trading venues authorised by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) as eligible for compliance with the EU trading obligation for derivatives, an announcement by the two agencies revealed.

The decision will allow EU investment banks that operate as swap dealers in Asia to comply with their EU trading obligation under the Markets in Financial Instruments Regulation (MiFIR), and in line with the G20 reforms for standardised derivatives when executing derivatives transactions with counterparties in Singapore. 

Concurrently, MAS has adopted regulations to exempt certain EU multilateral trading facilities and organised trading facilities from MAS' markets licensing requirements. With this, Singapore participants can trade with EU counterparties on such EU trading venues in compliance with Singapore's derivative trading obligations. 

This follows the agreement between the Commission and MAS on the common approach regarding certain derivatives trading platforms in early March. The decision will take the form of an implementing act and will enter into force on the day following its publication in the Official Journal of the EU.