AMF sends out a clear message

After months of relative quiet from EU NCAs, the AMF has offered some pointers for UK firms operating post-Brexit. In a recent webinar entitled "The access to the European and UK financial services market in a post-Brexit environment", the AMF set out its views on post-Brexit relocation plans, tied agents and reverse solicitation. None of these points are a surprise – but they serve as a reminder.

• Post-Brexit relocation plans: some firms are behind on this, especially in relation to deploying front office and compliance teams. Some entities have justified their delay on the grounds of the pandemic. However, this is not accepted by the regulators, and the AMF and ACPR have sent letters to such companies to remind them of their commitment to transfer employees as part of their post-Brexit plan.

• Reverse solicitation: this a subject that has been followed very closely for several years by European regulators and the AMF pointed out that concerns about its misuse led ESMA to publish a statement in January 2021 to remind investors about the rules. The AMF state that: the existence of a contractual clause and/or a disclaimer in a contract between a UK entity and an EU entity specifying that the relationship between the parties falls within the scope of reverse solicitation is not conclusive: the AMF will consider the way in which the relationship between the parties has been established. The AMF will, therefore, be keeping a watch on reverse solicitation and expects regulators to become stricter on this.

• Tied agents: the AMF noted a trend consisting of creating a MiFID licensed entity (usually licensed in Malta) operating in the rest of the EU through tied agents who are staffed by persons connected to a UK entity. This structuring has been reported by the AMF and many other European regulators. This does not surprise us.