MARKETS IN FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS REGULATIONS

MARKETS IN FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION 370.41

MARKETS IN FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

REGULATIONS

3rd January, 2018

LEGAL NOTICE 402 of 2017, as amended by Legal Notices 417 of

2018 and 218 of 2025.

(1)

The title of these regulations is the Markets in

Financial Instruments Regulations.

(2)

The purpose of these regulations is to implement the

relevant provisions of MiFIR as defined in regulation 2, and they shall

be interpreted and applied accordingly.

(3)

These regulations shall apply to persons to whom the

provisions of MiFIR apply including credit institutions authorized

under the Banking Act, insofar as these offer structured deposits as

defined herein.

(1)

In these regulations, unless the context otherwise

requires

"the Acts" means the Malta Financial Services Authority Act,

the Financial Markets Act, the Investment Services Act and the

Banking Act;

"CRD" means Directive 2013/36/EU of the European

Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 on access to the activity

of credit institutions and the prudential supervision of credit

institutions and investment firms, amending Directive 2002/87/EC and

repealing Directives 2006/48/EC and 2006/49/EC, as amended from

time to time, and includes any implementing measures that have been

or may be issued thereunder;

"deposit" means a credit balance which results from funds left

in an account or from temporary situations deriving from normal

banking transactions and which a credit institution is required to repay

under the legal and contractual conditions applicable, including a

fixed-term deposit and a savings deposit, but excluding a credit

balance where

(a) its existence can only be proven by a financial instrument

as defined in Article 4(17) of MIFID unless it is a savings

product which is evidenced by a certificate of deposit

made out to a named person and which exists in a Member

State on 2 July 2014;

(b) its principal is not repayable at par;

(c) its principal is only repayable at par under a particular

guarantee or agreement provided by the credit institution

or a third party;

MARKETS IN FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

"financial instrument" means an instrument included in the

Second Schedule to the Investment Services Act;

"MiFID" means Directive 2014/65/EU of the European

Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 on markets in financial

instruments and amending Directive 2002/92/EC and Directive 2011/

61/EU, as amended from time to time, and includes any implementing

measures that have been or may be issued thereunder;

"MiFIR" means Regulation (EU) No 600/2014 of the European

Parliament and of the Council of 15 May, 2014 on markets in financial

instruments and amending Regulation (EU) No 648/2012, as may be

amended from time to time, and includes any implementing measures,

implementing technical standards, regulatory technical standards,

guidelines and similar measures that have been or may be issued

thereunder;

"Regulation (EU) No 648/2012" means Regulation (EU) No

648/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 July

2012 on OTC derivatives, central counterparties and trade repositories,

as may be amended from time to time, and includes any implementing

measures, implementing technical standards, regulatory technical

standards, guidelines and similar measures that have been or may be

issued thereunder;

"structured deposit" means a deposit which is fully repayable at

maturity on terms under which interest or a premium will be paid or is

at risk, according to a formula involving factors such as

(a) an index or combination of indices, excluding variable

rate deposits whose return is directly linked to an interest

rate index such as Euribor or Libor;

(b) a financial instrument or combination of financial

instruments;

(c) a commodity or combination of commodities or other

physical or non-physical non-fungible assets; or

(d) a foreign exchange rate or combination of foreign

exchange rates;

(2)

Words and expressions used in the Acts shall, in these

regulations, have the same meaning as is assigned to them in the Acts.

(3)

In the event that any of these regulations conflict with the

provisions of MiFIR, the latter shall prevail.

The Malta Financial Services Authority, established by

the Malta Financial Services Authority Act, shall be the designated

MARKETS IN FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

competent authority in Malta for the purposes of implementing the

relevant provisions of MiFIR, and any reference in these regulations to

the competent authority shall be read and construed accordingly.

(1)

The competent authority shall exercise all the

functions, obligations and powers and shall satisfy all the requirements

imposed on competent authorities by MiFIR.

(2)

Without prejudice to sub-regulation (1), the competent

authority may, for the better implementation of the MiFIR, exercise

any of the powers assigned to it under the Acts.

For the better carrying out of the provisions of MiFIR

and of these regulations, the competent authority may, from time to

time, issue and publish Financial Market Rules, Investment Services

Rules and, or Conduct of Business Rules which shall be binding on

entities which are subject to the requirements of the MIFIR. These

rules may lay down additional requirements and conditions in relation

to these matters as the competent authority may consider appropriate

including

(a) the operation of MiFIR or these regulations;

(b) any matter relating to the functions, obligations and

powers of the competent authority under MiFIR; and

(c) any other matter arising in connection with MiFIR or

these regulations.

Deleted by Legal Notice 218 of 2025.

(1)

Where a person licensed or authorized in Malta,

and falling within the scope of MIFIR, fails to comply with any

provisions of that Regulation or of any Investment Services Rules and,

or Conduct of Business Rules, and, or Financial Markets Rules and, or

regulations implementing MIFIR, the competent authority may, by

notice in writing and without recourse to a court hearing, impose on

such person an administrative penalty and other administrative

measures in accordance with the provisions of the Financial Markets

Act (MiFID and MiFIR Administrative Penalties, Measures and

Investigatory Powers) Regulations, 2017 or the Investment Services

Act and Banking Act (MiFID and MiFIR Administrative Penalties,

Measures and Investigatory Powers) Regulations, 2017.

(2)

A right of appeal to the Financial Services Tribunal shall

lie from the decisions which the competent authority shall take under

these regulations and the provisions of article 21 of the Malta

Financial Services Authority Act shall apply mutatis mutandis.