Technical Standards on Market Soundings under the Market Abuse Regulation 

The European Commission adopted Regulatory Technical Standards on the arrangements, systems and procedures for market participants disclosing inside information while conducting market soundings. The Market Abuse Regulation, which will apply from July 3, 2016 across the EU, provides that when a disclosing market participant discloses inside information during a market sounding, that disclosure will be deemed to be made in the normal course of the exercise of the person's employment, profession or duty provided that certain conditions are met. Such disclosure would not therefore constitute market abuse. The adopted RTS require disclosing market participants to establish procedures which describe the way in which market soundings are conducted, to provide certain information to the person receiving the market sounding, including, where possible, an estimate as to when the information will cease to be inside information, and to keep records of the persons who have received market soundings. 

In addition, a disclosing market participant must, once he assesses that the information has ceased to be inside information, provide the receiving individual with the following information: (i) the identity of the disclosing market participant; (ii) the date and time of the market sounding; (iii) the identification of the transaction subject to the market sounding; (iv) that the disclosed information has ceased to be inside information; and (v) the date on which the information ceased to be inside information. However, there is no precise time set for such cleansing to take place. The requirements are in line the approach adopted by the European Securities and Markets Authority following its consultation on the proposed RTS. ESMA took the view that it would not be possible to establish procedures for a situation where a transaction failed or was abandoned because the information might remain inside information. 

The adopted RTS is subject to scrutiny by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union.

View the adopted RTS.