Overview

While the Committee of European Securities Regulators is continuing its efforts to co-ordinate European action on shortselling, individual regulators are taking their own actions or seeking to implement the CESR proposals early.

On 27 May 2010, the Spanish Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores decided to take a number of measures on short selling, which will enter into force on 10 June 2010. On 4 June 2010, the CNMV published a list of FAQ on the new measures, providing more details on how they will be applied.

Meanwhile in Italy the CONSOB has made a public statement that it is continuing to monitor very closely its T+3 settlement rule, which it regards as having the same effect as a ban on naked short selling. It says that although it is monitoring market conditions closely and may take further action, it will in any event start enforcement actions where there are irregularities on timely delivery of securities which it considers potentially abusive.

In Germany the government has given up its plans to ban currency derivatives and equity derivatives that replicate certain synthetic uncovered short positions. In a draft law published on 2 June 2010, the regulator (BaFin) was however given the power to ban transactions in these instruments if this is considered to be necessary to avoid detriment for the stability of the financial markets or their operability. BaFin's bans of 18 May 2010 regarding certain naked short sales and credit derivative transactions continue to be effective.

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