MiFID compliance - regulators in the spotlight

The impact of MiFID is likely to be watered down by a lack of regulatory harmony across Europe when the new rules come into force later this year, according to analysts.

MiFID - the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive - is Europe's attempt to update the regulations surrounding investment banks.

The unresolved issues surrounding MiFID are largely down to a large number of EU countries not transposing it to national law, said Peter Redshaw, research director at analyst group Gartner.

This will make it hard for companies to be compliant in time for the 1 November deadline. "I don't think anyone will be 100 per cent ready," he said.

Marcus Hooper, an independent consultant, said "the biggest barriers are the regulators".

Speaking at a MiFID roundtable briefing in London, organised by Cognizant, Hooper said: "Harmonisation is critical to European competitiveness on a global scale. We're seeing an awful lot of disharmony."

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Hooper played down the implications of non-compliance come 1 November. "Firms shouldn't be too worried about the regulators. I think they'll be very lax, lenient and forgiving," he said.

But he added: "There will be short term difficulties. But in the long term, honestly, it looks very good."