Measures and Investigatory Powers) Regulations, 2017

Suppliment tal-Gazzetta tal-Gvern ta’ Malta Nru. 19,925, 22 ta’ Diċembru, 2017

Taqsima B

L.N 407 of 2017

FINANCIAL MARKETS ACT

Financial Markets Act (CSDR Administrative Penalties,

Measures and Investigatory Powers) Regulations, 2017

IN EXERCISE of the powers conferred by article 49 of the

Financial Markets Act, the Minister responsible for the regulation of

financial services, acting on the advice of the Malta Financial

Services Authority, has made the following regulations:-

(1) The title of these regulations is the Financial Citation and

Markets Act (CSDR Administrative Penalties, Measures and scope.

Investigatory Powers) Regulations, 2017.

(2) The purpose of these regulations is to implement Article

63 of the CSDR, as herein defined and these regulations shall be

interpreted and applied accordingly.

(3) These regulations shall come into force on the 3rd January

2018.

(1)

In these regulations, unless the context otherwise Interpretation.

requires -

"the Act" means the Financial Markets Act;

"competent authority" means the Malta Financial Services

Authority established by the Malta Financial Services Authority Act; Cap. 330.

"CSDR" means Regulation (EU) No 909/2014 of the European

Parliament and of the Council of the 23 July 2014 on improving

securities settlement in the European Union and on central securities

depositories and amending Directives 98/26/EC and 2014/65/EU and

Regulation (EU) No 236/2012, as may be amended from time to time,

and includes any implementing measures that have been or may be

issued thereunder.

(2) Words and expressions which are also used in the Act shall

have the same meaning as in the Act.

The competent authority shall exercise its supervisory Supervisory

powers and its powers to impose penalties, in such a way as to ensure powers

powers to

full and complete adherence to the requirements and obligations impose

penalties.

arising out of the Act and any regulations and Financial Market Rules

issued thereunder and the CSDR, either directly or in collaboration

with European regulatory authorities and with overseas regulatory

authorities, in terms of law as warranted by the relevant

circumstances and shall take all measures necessary to ensure that

such administrative penalties are implemented.

Without prejudice to article 39A of the Act, to any

regulations made under the Act and to the supervisory powers of the

competent authority referred in regulation 3, the competent authority

shall impose administrative penalties and other administrative

measures for breaches of the CSDR and, or where any person

contravenes or fails to comply with any provision of Part IV of the

Act.

Where any person contravenes or fails to comply with the

provisions of Part IV of the Act, or of any rules or regulations

implementing the CSDR made under the Act, or with any provisions

of the CSDR, the competent authority may, by notice in writing and

without recourse to a court hearing impose the following penalties

(a) a public statement which indicates the person

responsible for the infringement and the nature of the

infringement;

(b) an order requiring the person responsible for the

infringement to cease the conduct and to desist from a repetition

of that conduct;

(c)

withdrawal of authorisation in accordance with

article 27 of the Act;

(d) a temporary or, for repeated serious infringements, a

permanent ban against any member of the institution’s

management body or any other natural person, who is held

responsible, from exercising management functions in the

institution;

(e)

maximum administrative pecuniary sanctions of at

least twice the amounts of the profit gained as a result of an

infringement where those amounts can be determined;

(f)

in respect of a natural person, maximum

administrative pecuniary sanctions of five million euro

(€5,000,000);

(g) in the case of legal person, maximum administrative

pecuniary sanctions of twenty million euro (€20,000,000) or up

to 10% of the total annual turnover of the legal person according

to the last available accounts approved by the management

body; where the legal person is a parent undertaking or a

subsidiary of the parent undertaking which has to prepare

consolidated financial accounts according to Directive 2013/34/

EU, the relevant total annual turnover shall be the total annual

turnover or the corresponding type of income according to the

relevant Accounting Directives according to the last available

consolidated accounts approved by the management body of the

ultimate parent undertaking.

Subject to the provisions of the Act, any person in respect Right of appeal.

of whom a decision is taken by the competent authority under these

regulations may appeal to the Financial Services Tribunal in terms of

article 42 of the Act.

€0.18