Towards a Uniform European Capital Markets Law: Commission Proposals to Reform Transparency

Abstract

The European Union has had a uniform legal framework to transparency of major holdings and financial instruments since 2004. These provisions are to be reformed. In October 2011, the European Commission presented a proposal for a Directive to amend the Transparency Directive. This paper analyses the draft and puts it in context. It also looks at the Commission’s stated aim to strengthen the disclosure regime and give it a more European emphasis. The proposal could represent a further move towards codification of European capital markets law.