Esma's latest FX consultation branded ‘pointless’

New guidelines 'carry no legal weight'

A man screaming into a tin-can telephone while a woman listens on the other end of the line

The latest attempt by the European Securities and Markets Authority (Esma) to solve the dispute over FX instrument definitions is "pointless", according to market participants, and will not level the unequal regulatory playing field that exists in Europe.

Esma is expected to issue guidelines on the precise cut-off line between FX spot and forward contracts to national regulators in the European Union within the next few weeks. The Markets in Financial Instrument Directive (Mifid) was intended to

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