As a lesson learnt from the financial crisis 2007/2008, the European Union aimed at establishing a more integrated European supervision in order to ensure a true level playing field for all actors at the EU level and to reflect the increasing integration of financial markets within the EU. The introduction of the European System of Financial Supervision (ESFS) in 2010 marks the first time a new supervisory architecture was established at the European level, consisting of three European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) and a board to monitor systemic risks – the European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB). The ESAs and the ESRB started their operations in January 2011.

In September 2017 the European Commission launched a proposal to amend provisions regulating functioning of ESMA and the other ESAs with the aim of more strongly integrating European supervision to foster the Capital Markets Union and financial integration. Following adoption by the co-legislators, core elements for reforming the tasks, supervisory competences, governance structures, and financing of the ESAs and the ESRB came into force in January 2020, while ESMA’s new direct supervisory competences on critical benchmarks and data provision services took effect from January 2022.

As an integrated provider of financial services, Deutsche Börse Group comprises the whole range of financial markets infrastructure (FMI) operators, such as central counterparties, central securities depositories, securities settlement systems, and a trade repository. It also includes trading venues (regulated markets and multilateral trading facilities) and data reporting services providers.

The Group’s entire value chain is impacted by the ESAs’ work as the Group faces a wide range of different supervisors across the EU – European FMIs operate within a diverse supervisory framework. As such, we support developing a common supervisory culture and facilitating a single European financial market in order to ensure consistent and coherent financial supervision in the EU.

For further information on Deutsche Börse Group’s positioning on the matter, find our statements and position papers under Publications.