Changes between two versions

What changed between the draft committee report of 11 Jan 2024 and the draft committee report of 3 Apr 2025

From · draft committee report· 11 Jan 2024

on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulation (EU) 2016/1011 as regards the scope of the rules for benchmarks, the use in the Union of benchmarks provided by an administrator located in a third country, and certain reporting requirements

To · draft committee report· 3 Apr 2025

ECON-PR-772074

on the Council position at first reading with a view to the adoption of a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulation (EU) 2016/1011 as regards the scope of the rules for benchmarks, the use in the Union of benchmarks provided by an administrator located in a third country, and certain reporting requirements

These two texts have too little in common to compare paragraph by paragraph: they are different documents rather than versions of one (for example one group’s motion and the joint text that was adopted).

+8 added · −150 removed · 8 changed paragraphs, packaging included.

Part 2 of 4: SHORT JUSTIFICATION

Added:SHORT JUSTIFICATION

Removed:Recital 2 a (new): (2a) Benchmark administrators who wish to remain within the scope of Regulation (EU) 2016/1011 should have the option to request voluntary supervision even if their benchmarks do not meet the threshold of a significant benchmark or they are not designated as significant. Likewise, benchmark administrators who wish to obtain a regulatory license under Regulation (EU) 2016/1011 where their benchmarks do not meet the significant threshold should not be prohibited from doing so.

Added:The Council position at first reading reflects the agreement reached between Parliament and the Council in interinstitutional negotiations at early second reading stage, after legal-linguistic verification. Since the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON), in its vote on 16 January 2025, already confirmed the outcome of those interinstitutional negotiations, as your rapporteur, I propose that ECON recommends that the Plenary confirms the position of the Council at first reading without amending it.

Removed:Recital 4: (4) Pursuant to Article 19d of Regulation (EU) 2016/1011, administrators of significant benchmarks are required to endeavour to provide an EU Climate Transition Benchmark or an EU Paris-aligned Benchmark in an attempt to form a comprehensive supply of climate indices in the Union.

Removed:Recital 6: (6) Benchmark administrators should monitor the use in the Union of the benchmarks they provide and notify the competent authority concerned or the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), depending on where that administrator is located, that the aggregate use of one of their benchmarks has exceeded the threshold laid down in Article 24(1), point (a), of Regulation (EU) 2016/1011. However, it is challenging to calculate such threshold, especially limiting to the Union scope. To ensure consistent implementation of those thresholds ESMA should develop draft regulatory technical standards to specify further the calculation method. The data should be available to ESMA with the introduction of a reporting mechanism from benchmark users and the inclusion of an endeavour/obligation for administrators of benchmarks used in the Union to request a globally agreed identifier code to identify their benchmarks.

Removed:Recital 6 a (new): (6a) To ensure that benchmark administrators have sufficient time to adapt to the requirements that apply to significant benchmarks, they should only be subject to those requirements as from 60 working days after having submitted such a notification. In addition, benchmark administrators should provide the competent authorities concerned or ESMA, upon request, with all information necessary to assess that benchmark’s aggregate use in the Union.

Removed:Recital 6 b (new): (6b) Where a benchmark administrator fails to notify the competent authorities that the usage of one of its benchmarks has exceeded the threshold laid down in Article 24(1), point (a), of Regulation (EU) 2016/1011, and where the competent authorities have clear and demonstrable grounds to consider that the threshold has been exceeded, the competent authorities concerned or ESMA, as appropriate, should be able to declare that the threshold has been exceeded, having first given the administrator the opportunity to be heard. Such declaration should trigger the same obligations for the benchmark administrator as a notification by the benchmark administrator. This should be without prejudice to the ability of ESMA or competent authorities to impose administrative penalties on administrators that fail to notify that one of their benchmarks has exceeded the applicable threshold.

Removed:Recital 12: (12) EU Climate Transition Benchmarks and EU Paris-aligned Benchmarks are specific categories of benchmarks, defined by their compliance with rules governing their methodology and the disclosure requirements of their administrators. For that reason, and to prevent claims that could lead users to think that such benchmarks are compliant with the standards attached to those labels, it is necessary to subject those benchmarks to mandatory registration, authorisation, recognition or endorsement, as appropriate, and to supervision.

Removed:Recital 12 a (new): (12a) The regulatory treatment of commodity benchmarks should be tailored to their specific characteristics. Commodity benchmarks that are subject to the general rules for financial benchmarks should be treated identically to other financial benchmarks and should be covered by Regulation (EU) 2016/1011 only if they are significant or critical benchmarks and have not been exempted from the scope of this Regulation. Commodity benchmarks subject to the specific regime in Annex II of Regulation (EU) 2016/1011 should always be covered by that Regulation in order to ensure the robustness and reliability of their assessments.

Removed:Recital 20 a (new): (20a) Regulation (EU) 2019/2089 has introduced rules as regards the transparency of benchmarks claiming, in their marketing of legal communication, to be taking environmental, social or governance (ESG) factors into consideration in their design. In order to maintain a high level of transparency surrounding ESG-related claims and an adequate level of protection for users, it is appropriate to require that users of benchmarks making ESG-related claims do not use such benchmarks when they are not provided with the information referred to in Articles 13(1), point d, and 27(2a) of Regulation (EU) 2016/1011. This should apply to the use of any benchmark claiming to take ESG factors into account in their design, regardless of whether such benchmark is administered in the Union or in a third-country.

Removed:Recital 21: (21) To ensure a seamless transition to the rules introduced under this Regulation administrators previously supervised under Regulation (EU) 2016/1011 should keep existing registrations, authorisations, recognitions or endorsements for six months after the entry into application of this amending regulation. This time period intends to give competent authorities or ESMA the time to decide whether any of the previously supervised administrators shall be designated in accordance with this Regulation. If designated, administrators previously authorised, registered, recognised or endorsed should be allowed to retain their previous status and not have to re-apply. Administrators of significant benchmarks should, in any event, be allowed to retain their status as registered, authorised, recognised or endorsed benchmark administrators.