The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the EU’s securities markets regulator, today publishes its third Annual Statistical Report (Report) analysing the European Union’s (EU) derivatives markets. It provides a comprehensive market-level view of the EU’s derivatives markets in 2019, which had a total size of €681tn gross notional amount outstanding, a decrease of 5% on 2018. The Report is based on data submitted under the European Markets and Infrastructure Regulation (EMIR).
Steven Maijoor, Chair, said:
“This year’s EU derivatives report reflects the improving quality of data reported under EMIR to present a comprehensive picture of derivative markets. It shows in particular that the clearing obligation, which began in 2016, continued to reduce systemic and counterparty risk in 2019.
“The collection and analysis of this data helps ESMA meet its financial stability and orderly markets objectives, by contributing to our risk assessment capability, facilitating regulatory authorities’ oversight and enhancing supervisory convergence across the EU.”
Highlights
The reduction in the total market size during 2019 was driven mainly by currency and equity derivatives, which fell by 15% and 35% respectively. Interest rate derivatives grew in the first half of the year, but later fell back and finished unchanged over the year;
OTC trading still accounts for the majority of the trading with the share growing to 92% from 90%. The total share executed on trading venues (which includes some OTC trading) fell from 17% to 15%, driven by a fall in exchanged-traded derivatives;
Exposures continue to be highly concentrated in relatively few counterparties, particularly investment firms, credit institutions and CCPs. In all markets, a few large counterparties are widely connected to other market participants; and
The UK remains the dominant market for transactions within the EEA as well as with third countries. There were some signs of UK-US exposures growing slightly, while UK-EEA exposures fell.
EMIR data continues to improve. In this year’s report, the removal of an over-reporting counterparty improved data for both 2018 and 2019, enabling a refinement of 2018’s statistics.
The report also includes an analysis of a specific derivatives market, credit default swaps (CDS), presenting market structure and trends statistics for 2019 and some CDS-specific indicators. A second article analyses the initial margins collected by CCPs, by asset, levels of concentration, and explores systemic risk.
ESMA will continue to report on its analysis on an annual basis.
Did you know that hackers attack an average of 2,244 times a day? They can have an impact even on our personal lives.
“Cybercrime will never happen to me.”
We all think this way until it does happen. As more of our life moves online, we need to be aware of how to stay safe.
Did you know that hackers attack an average of 2,244 times a day globally, causing damage to the economy and hurting businesses? They can even have an impact on our personal lives!
Phishing, hacking, data leaks and other cyber threats are among the biggest global risks of the decade after climate change (WEF). This is why one of the top priorities of the EU is to make the internet a safer place for everyone. That means protecting your personal data while you browse, but also safeguarding key infrastructure from cyberattacks, and ensuring we think through the risks of new technologies.
From raising awareness to fighting cybercriminals, here are seven ways the EU works to keep you safe online.
October is not only about pumpkins and Halloween: it is also Cybersecurity Month. This year, the European Cybersecurity Month is raising awareness of risks online and encouraging everyone to ‘ThinkB4UClick’.
Being safe online is about getting the basics right. Think before you click, install anti-virus software, choose your passwords smartly, and keep your devices locked when you are away.
These are simple tips and tricks you can follow to protect yourself online.
2. Protecting the little ones
Today, young Europeans are growing up with YouTube and Instagram. The internet opens doors to many new experiences, stimulating learning and creativity. However, children can also be exposed to online bullying and sexual harassment. This is why the EU has put in place several measures to protect them, foster digital literacy and fight against online child sexual abuse.
For instance, the EU provides a support network to every European country with a Safer Internet Centre, which you can call free of charge to seek help from experts on consent, data protection, online privacy and more.
3. With strong EU rules, your privacy matters
When you access the web, you often entrust personal information, such as your name, address, and credit card number, to your Internet Service Provider or to the website you are using. Most commonly, you give your personal data in exchange for a service or information.
EU rules such as the ePrivacy Directive and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ensure that this data is treated carefully, does not fall into wrong hands and that you have more control over how it is used. The EU is proud to have the strongest and most modern Data Protection rules in the world, rules which are becoming a global standard.
4. Digital skills make the world go round
The EU has taken the lead on cryptography know-how and cybersecurity. However, as in any fast-paced field, keeping pace with the needs of the cybersecurity industry and investing in new digital skills is crucial.
The EU has taken many steps to encourage the development of digital skills by modernising education. The EU provides grants for master’s, PhD and post-graduate research and promotes upskilling and reskilling opportunities, with a particular emphasis on digital skills.
With more trained IT and cybersecurity professionals and a more digitally-skilled public, we are all safer online.
5. Working together to fight cybercrime and prevent attacks
Increased cyber attacks during the coronavirus crisis have shown how important it is to protect our hospitals, research centres and other infrastructure. Cybersecurity is one of the Commission’s priorities and the Recovery Plan for Europe includes additional investments in cybersecurity. We are also taking strong action to strengthen cybersecurity capacities: we will soon update legislation in the area of cybersecurity, with a new Cybersecurity Strategy coming up by the end of 2020, and will invest in cybersecurity research and capacity building.
Whether you are buying products in online shops, making bank transactions or searching for a job, a lot of your personal data is shared online. Cybercriminals aim to intercept online banking transactions, steal identities and harass people. This is why the Commission monitors and updates EU law on cybercrime and supports law enforcement capacity across EU countries. We are also working with the European Cybercrime Centre in Europol, the central hub for criminal information and intelligence. It offers operational and analytical support to investigations in all EU countries.
On top of that, the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity, ENISA has a very wide ambit and works on various topics including protecting smart grid electricity networks, eHealth systems, big data and much more. It provides support to all EU countries and ensures cybersecurity is embedded across all domains of EU policy.
In a hyperconnected world, ENISA aims to prepare Europe for the cyber challenges of tomorrow.
6. Thinking ahead on 5G networks — extra speed with extra protection
A revolution in how we stay connected is just around the corner. 5G is the 5th generation of mobile networks designed to meet society’s increased data and connectivity demands at greater speeds.
5G will have an impact on every aspect of our lives — from smart medicine and remote-controlled machinery to more efficient energy grids and connected cars.
To protect these future networks, we have had to change the way we think about security, which is not only a national issue but also a common challenge. The EU is working to provide guidance and measures to mitigate the new risks that come with 5G.
7. Tackling disinformation online
Nope, the Earth is not flat and no, 5G does not cause COVID-19. Seems straightforward, and yet we find disinformation everywhere online, also amplified by social media.
Online disinformation can have far-reaching consequences. It is a threat to democratic debate, and puts our health, security and environment at risk. The EU is therefore working to implement a clear, comprehensive and broad set of actions to tackle the spread of online disinformation in Europe.
On top of that, the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity, ENISA has a very wide ambit and works on various topics including protecting smart grid electricity networks, eHealth systems, big data and much more. It provides support to all EU countries and ensures cybersecurity is embedded across all domains of EU policy.
In a hyperconnected world, ENISA aims to prepare Europe for the cyber challenges of tomorrow.
6. Thinking ahead on 5G networks — extra speed with extra protection
A revolution in how we stay connected is just around the corner. 5G is the 5th generation of mobile networks designed to meet society’s increased data and connectivity demands at greater speeds.
5G will have an impact on every aspect of our lives — from smart medicine and remote-controlled machinery to more efficient energy grids and connected cars.
To protect these future networks, we have had to change the way we think about security, which is not only a national issue but also a common challenge. The EU is working to provide guidance and measures to mitigate the new risks that come with 5G.
7. Tackling disinformation online
Nope, the Earth is not flat and no, 5G does not cause COVID-19. Seems straightforward, and yet we find disinformation everywhere online, also amplified by social media.
Online disinformation can have far-reaching consequences. It is a threat to democratic debate, and puts our health, security and environment at risk. The EU is therefore working to implement a clear, comprehensive and broad set of actions to tackle the spread of online disinformation in Europe.
We aim to be a leader in the fight against online disinformation and the threat it poses to our shared values and democratic systems.
More info:
Safer Internet Centres: Across the EU, these centres offer support to people facing problems online.
In the wake of several terror attacks in Europe, MEPs will discuss ways to step up security cooperation and improve information exchange between police forces.
The Civil Liberties Committee will assess the state of play in counter-terrorism and the security strategy with Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson and the German Presidency of the Council. Future developments regarding the so-called Prüm decisions and automated exchanges of information from DNA databases, fingerprints and car registration data, and the 2004 Advance Passenger Information (API) directive, which obliges carriers to collect passenger information, will play a central part in the debate.
Strengthening Europol’s mandate, the future action plan on integration and exclusion and current negotiations to ensure terrorist content is removed from the internet swiftly and efficiently are also likely to be raised.
When: Monday, 16 November, from 16.50 to 18.05.
Where: European Parliament in Brussels, József Antall (4Q2), and remotely.
Last week, MEPs held a plenary debate with Commissioner Johansson on the latest terror attacks and the need to further develop the counter-terrorism strategy, in parallel with additional efforts to promote fundamental freedoms and integration.
In today’s Big Story podcast, almost two weeks after the American election, leading social media platforms are inundated with false claims about the results. Claims that are supported and amplified by Donald Trump and key members of his administration. After talking tough regarding disinformation in the months leading up to the election, and even slapping warnings on the president’s posts, have Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok lived up to their promises?
And the big question: Will Twitter ever ban Donald Trump? Where would their business be without him?
GUEST: Jesse Hirsh, researcher and futurist, metaviews.ca
Britain’s Chief negotiator to the EU David Frost walks to Brexit trade negotiations, in London, Britain, November 13, 2020. [Reuters]
Britain and the European Union have made some progress in their negotiations for a post-Brexit trade deal but might not succeed in getting an agreement, Britain’s top Brexit negotiator said as he headed into further talks on Sunday.
“There has been some progress in a positive direction in recent days,” David Frost said on Twitter.
“We also now largely have common draft treaty texts, though significant elements are of course not yet agreed. We will work to build on these and get an overall agreement if we can. But we may not succeed.”
Read More
3/4 There has been some progress in a positive direction in recent days. We also now largely have common draft treaty texts, though significant elements are of course not yet agreed. We will work to build on these and get an overall agreement if we can.
— David Frost (@DavidGHFrost) November 15, 2020
Global efforts to promote divestment from fossil fuels expanded further as 47 faith institutions announced their divestment from fossil fuels on Monday, in the largest-ever announcement of its kind among religious leaders.
The Global Catholic Climate Movement in a statement said that 42 Catholic institutions and five other additional protestant and Jewish institutions have severed ties with the fossil fuel industry in a bid to help tackle the climate crisis. They join with nearly 400 other faith institutions that have divested from fossil fuels.
This announcement comes after the Vatican’s first-ever operational guidance on the environment was issued as part of the celebration of the fifth anniversary of Pope Francis’ 2015 Encyclical Laudato sí. The guidelines, signed by all of the Vatican’s dicasteries, encouraged Catholics to avoid investing in companies “that harm human or social ecology (for example, through abortion or the arms trade), or environmental ecology (for example, through the use of fossil fuels).”
Infographic map of faith institutions committed to divesting from fossil fuels
The Church’s commitment to clean energy finds its roots in its tradition of Catholic Social Teaching.
On 16 November 1970, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), Pope Paul VI reminded all that “everything is bound up together” in the “living design of the creator” and warned that we risked “provoking a veritable ecological catastrophe.”
Similarly, Pope Francis, in Laudato sí, reiterated that “everything is connected” in “one complex crisis which is both social and environment.” The Pope also pointed out that “we still lack the culture need to confront this crisis.”
Pope Francis has also convened an “Economy of Francesco” conference, scheduled to begin on 19 November 2020 to examine innovative ways Catholics are developing a sustainable economy, propelled by leadership from young people.
Commitment to solving the climate crisis
Fr. Manuel Barrios Prieto, Secretary-General of the Bishops’ Conferences of Europe (COMECE) said that the European Bishops joins the movement to divest from fossil fuels and encouraged others to also take concrete steps to solve the climate crisis.
He added that commitments to the Paris agreement is important, and the European Green Deal is a way of doing so, as “solving the climate crisis protects the human family from the dangers of a warming world, and decisive action is needed now more than ever.”
In the same vein, Inger Andersen, under-secretary-general of the UN and executive director of the UN Environmental Programme highlighted that “the economic power of faiths, turned to responsible investments and the green economy, can be a major driver of positive change, and an inspiration to others, as we rebuild better.”
BRUSSELS, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) — The China Chamber of Commerce to the European Union (CCCEU) on Sunday hailed the signing of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement as “uplifting” amid global recession caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the presence of leaders of China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Australia, New Zealand, and ten member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the RCEP agreement was officially signed on Sunday, forging the largest free trade bloc in the world.
“The conclusion of this agreement offers an uplifting example of international economic cooperation, which has been affected by protectionism and unilateralism; and it has also injected confidence to boost global economic recovery hit by the recession,” said Zhou Lihong, chairwoman of the CCCEU.
“Right now, China and the EU are racing towards ending negotiation of the bilateral investment treaty (BIT) by the end of this year. We are looking forward to the conclusion of this long-awaited agreement,” said Zhou, who is former chair of Bank of China Luxembourg.
“We are also expecting to put bilateral free trade talks on the official agenda as soon as possible, which could then offer a solid framework of trade and investment liberalization and facilitation in the two major markets consisting of 1.9 billion consumers,” she added.
Based in Brussels, the CCCEU was founded in 2018 by a group of Chinese enterprises operating in the European Union (EU). It represents some 1,000 Chinese companies in numerous industries, such as finance, energy, transportation, manufacturing, ICT and artificial intelligence.
European leaders must not let up on efforts to construct an autonomous bloc that is capable of resisting the duopoly of China and the US, Emmanuel Macron has said in his first extended response to the US presidential election.
The French president said the US would only respect Europe if it was sovereign with respect to its own defence, technology and currency. Warning that US values and interests were not quite the same as Europe’s, he said: “It is not tenable that our international policies should be dependent on it or to be trailing behind it.” The same need for independence applied even more to China, he added.
His analysis came in a marathon interview in the journal Le Grand Continent, conducted last Thursday, in which he called for a redoubling of the protection of the values of the European enlightenment against “barbarity and obscurantism”. Le Grand Continent is the review attached to the leading French thinktank Groupe d’Études Géopolitiques.
Macron suggested 2020 may prove to be a landmark year similar to 1945, 1968 and 2007. Much of the interview considered the extent to which the forces that led to Donald Trump’s election in 2016, and the UK’s Brexit vote, could be contained, and reversed.
“The changeover of the administration in America is an opportunity to to pursue in a truly peaceful and calm manner what allies need to understand among themselves – which is that we need to continue to build our independence for ourselves, as the US does for itself and as China does for itself.”
He explicitly claimed that the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, was resisting German politicians who have described the search for European autonomy as an illusion, saying such a view is a “historical misinterpretation”.
“It is vital that our Europe finds the ways and the means to decide for itself to rely on itself, not to depend on others in every area, technological, health, geopolitics, and to be able to cooperate with whomever it chooses,” he said.
Macron added that although the US was Europe’s historical ally, cherishing similar principles, “our values are not quite the same. We have an attachment to social democracy, to more equality. Our reactions are not quite the same”.
Macron, who previously criticised Nato as being “brain-dead”, said: “Europe has a lot of thoughts unthought. On a geostrategic level we had forgotten to think because we thought our geopolitical relations through Nato.”
Calling for a reinvention of international cooperation, he said the current multilateral frameworks were blocked. “The UN security council no longer produces useful solutions today. We all have some responsibility to bear when some [institutions] such as the World Health Organization find themselves hostages to the crises of multilateralism.”
He said the deep crisis of cooperation was a crisis born of conflicting values, including the rise of neoconservatism and a breakdown in the universal principle of inviolable human rights. This rupture, he said, “is the fruit of ideological choices fully endorsed by powers that see in it the means to rise, and a form of fatigue, of breakdown”.
Without mentioning Turkey directly, he said: “Authoritarian regional powers are re-emerging, theocracies are re-emerging. It is an extraordinary acceleration of a return of religion on the political scene in a number of these countries.”
Europe, Macron suggested, was fighting against “a colossal step backward in history”, led by those who use radical Islamism to challenge freedom of expression. Insisting he respected cultures and civilisations, he said “nevertheless I am not going to change our laws because they shock elsewhere”.
Timeline
From Brefusal to Brexit: a history of Britain in the EU
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After 47 years and 30 days it was all over. As the clock struck 11pm on 31 January 2020, the UK was officially divorced from the EU and began trying to carve out a new global role as a sovereign nation. It was a union that got off to a tricky start and continued to be marked by the UK’s sometimes conflicted relationship with its neighbours.
The French president, Charles de Gaulle, vetoes Britain’s entry to EEC, accusing the UK of a “deep-seated hostility” towards the European project.
With Sir Edward Heath having signed the accession treaty the previous year, the UK enters the EEC in an official ceremony complete with a torch-lit rally, dickie-bowed officials and a procession of political leaders, including former prime ministers Harold Macmillan and Alec Douglas-Home.
Referendum
The UK decides to stay in the common market after 67% voted “yes”. Margaret Thatcher, later to be leader of the Conservative party, campaigned to remain.
‘Give us our money back’
Margaret Thatcher negotiated what became known as the UK rebate with other EU members after the “iron lady” marched into the former French royal palace at Fontainebleau to demand “our own money back” claiming for every £2 contributed we get only £1 back” despite being one of the “three poorer” members of the community.
It was a move that sowed the seeds of Tory Euroscepticism that was to later cause the Brexit schism in the party.
The Bruges speech
Thatcher served notice on the EU community in a defining moment in EU politics in which she questioned the expansionist plans of Jacques Delors, who had remarked that 80% of all decisions on economic and social policy would be made by the European Community within 10 years with a European government in “embryo”. That was a bridge too far for Thatcher.
The cold war ends
Collapse of Berlin wall and fall of communism in eastern Europe, which would later lead to expansion of EU.
‘No, no, no’
Divisions between the UK and the EU deepened with Thatcher telling the Commons in an infamous speech it was ‘no, no, no’ to what she saw as Delors’ continued power grab. Rupert Murdoch’s Sun newspaper ratchets up its opposition to Europe with a two-fingered “Up yours Delors” front page.
Black Wednesday
A collapse in the pound forced prime minister John Major and the then chancellor Norman Lamont to pull the UK out of the Exchange Rate Mechanism.
The single market
On 1 January, customs checks and duties were removed across the bloc. Thatcher hailed the vision of “a single market without barriers – visible or invisible – giving you direct and unhindered access to the purchasing power of over 300 million of the world’s wealthiest and most prosperous people”.
Maastricht treaty
Tory rebels vote against the treaty that paved the way for the creation of the European Union. John Major won the vote the following day in a pyrrhic victory.
Repairing the relationship
Tony Blair patches up the relationship. Signs up to social charter and workers’ rights.
Nigel Farage elected an MEP and immediately goes on the offensive in Brussels. “Our interests are best served by not being a member of this club,” he said in his maiden speech. “The level playing field is about as level as the decks of the Titanic after it hit an iceberg.”
Chancellor Gordon Brown decides the UK will not join the euro.
EU enlarges to to include eight countries of the former eastern bloc including Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic.
EU expands again, allowing Romania and Bulgaria into the club.
Migrant crisis
Anti-immigration hysteria seems to take hold with references to “cockroches” by Katie Hopkins in the Sun and tabloid headlines such as “How many more can we take?” and “Calais crisis: send in the dogs”.
David Cameron returns from Brussels with an EU reform package – but it isn’t enough to appease the Eurosceptic wing of his own party
Brexit referendum
The UK votes to leave the European Union, triggering David Cameron’s resignation and paving the way for Theresa May to become prime minister
Britain leaves the EU
After years of parliamentary impasse during Theresa May’s attempt to get a deal agreed, the UK leaves the EU.
He attributed some of the rise of populism to the effect of a breakpoint in the previous Washington consensus about the virtues of globalisation. “When the middle classes no longer have the means to progress and see their situation sliding year after year, a doubt about democracy sets in. That is what we are seeing precisely everywhere, from the US of Donald Trump, to Brexit and the warning shots in our country,” he said.
Macron warned that social media had become an instrument for the rejection of all expertise, be it political, academic or scientific. “We have not organised a public order for this space. The virtual space over determines our choices today, and at the same time it transforms our political life. And therefore it disrupts democracies and our lives.”
He said he was pursuing the concept of a golden hour, the idea that social media firms have 60 minutes to identify and take down posts that glorify and incite terrorism and hate.
The High Representative of the European Union Josep Borrell said in a statement that settlement expansion in Givat Hamatos is illegal under international law.
Borrell added: “I am deeply worried by the Israeli authorities’ decision to open the bidding process for the construction of housing units for an entirely new settlement at Givat Hamatos”.
This is a key location between Jerusalem and Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank. Any settlement construction will cause serious damage to the prospects for a viable and contiguous Palestinian state and, more broadly, to the possibility of a negotiated two-state solution in line with the internationally agreed parameters and with Jerusalem as the future capital of two states, Borrell said.
The EU has repeatedly called on Israel to end all settlement activity and to dismantle outposts erected since March 2001. It remains the EU’s firm position that settlements are illegal under international law.
The announced settlement activity will lead to the continuing weakening of efforts to rebuild trust and confidence between the parties which is necessary for an eventual resumption of meaningful negotiations.
The Government of Israel should instead show vision and responsibility and reverse these negative decisions at this critical and sensitive time Borrell end his settlement.
European Union Heads of Mission and like-minded countries visit Giva’t Hamatos in East Jerusalem
Also, the European Union Heads of mission, together with like-minded countries, are visiting Givat Hamatos in East Jerusalem. Yesterday morning, the Israeli Ministry of Housing and Israel Land Authority opened the tender (bidding process) for 1,257 housing units to be built in Givat Hamatos in East Jerusalem
The construction in Givat Hamatos will block the possibility of territorial contiguity between East Jerusalem and Bethlehem.
