FCA Grants APA Approval for Bloomberg’s MiFID II Solutions

The impending deadline on January 3, 2018 for MiFID II has created a staunch rise in the demand for certified solutions. Ahead of the implementation date, Bloomberg Data Reporting Services Limited (BDRSL) has become the latest group to receive approval from the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for its Approved Publication Arrangement (APA).

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APA authorization is important because over-the-counter (OTC) trading firms will be obligated to publicize certain transaction information. Per the authorization, Bloomberg’s pre-integrated MiFID II solution will be compliant with the new regulations, supporting the publication of requisite trade details – this will also help clients meet transparency requirements.

MiFID II in focus

Ben Macdonald, Bloomberg’s Global Head of Enterprise Products, commented: “APA authorisation is a critical component of our regulatory reporting service that not only enables our clients to meet trade transparency reporting requirements, but also transaction reporting, best Execution and trade archiving requirements through our fully integrated regulatory hub.”

The authorization is of great importance for Bloomberg, which builds on an existing suite of reporting solutions – this includes FINRA Trade Reporting and Compliance Engine (TRACE), Bloomberg Swaps Data Repository (BSDR) for Dodd Frank reporting, and Bloomberg Trade Repository (BTRL) for EMIR reporting.

The group’s APA authorization for MiFID II addresses both pre- and post -trade reporting, though it is also looking to bolster its ARM reporting capabilities under MiFID I to MiFID II transaction reporting. This approval will augment Bloomberg’s current ARM for transaction reporting under MiFID I – the group expects to obtain FCA authorization to operate MiFID II-compliant ARM.

“We are pleased to receive authorisation from the FCA. We have already begun testing our end-to-end workflow with the APA. With this approval we are ready to help clients satisfy their public reporting requirements from pre-trade onwards, along with the other MiFID II mandates addressed by our comprehensive suite of solutions,” added Alejandro Perez, Global Head of Post-Trade Solutions at Bloomberg.

The FCA has been active today, dolling out multiple approvals for other MiFID II solutions. This has seen similar authorizations granted for NEX Regulatory Reporting and Trax, as venues are collectively seeking to strengthen their solutions suite while also setting up for a MiFID II-compliant ARM.