EU ministers back expanded market oversight but exclude BME and Deutsche Börse

EU finance ministers have agreed on a negotiating position to expand the powers of the European Securities and Markets Authority, or ESMA, based in Paris.

The plan would let ESMA directly oversee major trading platforms, clearing houses, securities depositories and some crypto-asset providers.

But the governments’ agreement excludes several firms that the European Commission wanted covered, including Germany’s Deutsche Börse and Spain’s BME.

It also limits crypto oversight to the largest providers, meaning fewer firms would be supervised by ESMA than under the Commission’s proposal.

The Commission says the compromise is not ambitious enough and could discourage financial firms from growing across Europe.

Spain supported the agreement as a step in the right direction, while saying it would have preferred a more ambitious plan.

The European Parliament will now take up the proposal and could seek stricter terms.