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The bloc's Member States and the European Parliament are in final talks on revising trading rules, known as the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID), to reflect rapid advances in technology and apply lessons from the financial crisis. The negotiations have been bogged down for months, pitting Britain against Germany and France.
The coalition urged the bloc to keep a so-called "open access" proposal in MiFID which would give users of markets a choice of where to clear their securities transactions. "Access will benefit end-investors, stimulate true choice in the execution and clearing of products such as exchange traded derivatives ... reduce costs and minimize risk in the financial system", its members said in a letter to the parliament and Member States, seen by Reuters.
The letter was signed by the London Stock Exchange, the European Fund and Asset Management Association, BlackRock, Fidelity Worldwide Investment, State Street, Allianz Global Investors, the Association of British Insurers, the UK's Investment Management Association and its Italian counterpart Assogestioni.
The coalition's letter said investors "seek genuine choice... to deliver better results for customers, savers and pensioners" and want waivers from having to put orders on an exchange. "The strength of the recovery depends on the ability of companies and investors to access financial markets with confidence", it said. "The MiFID review... should allow growing companies to access financing, facilitate investor choice in execution, decrease the cost of capital and avoid the concentration of risk", it said.