The Central Bank has published the fifth edition of its Investment Firms Q&A

On 8 October 2018, The Central Bank has published the fifth edition of its Investment Firms Q&A containing an additional question ID 1039.

Question ID 1039 relates to the scope of the term “transferable securities” and addresses circumstances where securities have restricted transferability, for example, loan notes and shares in private companies.  The response to Question ID 1039 reiterates the understanding of the term “transferable securities” set out in the European Commission’s Q&A on the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive.  The response also indicates that investments firms should consider whether securities with restricted transferability are “transferable securities” for the purposes of the definition of investment instruments in Section 2 of the Investment Intermediaries Act 1995.

In circumstances where investment firms are providing services in relation to securities with restrictions on transferability firms should assess on a case-by-case basis whether those securities are “transferable securities” under the European Union (Markets in Financial Instruments) Regulations 2017 or the Investment Intermediaries Act 1995.  Based on that assessment an investment firm must provide its services in compliance with the applicable regulatory requirements.