5.VI.3.1 General

MiFID II covers a framework to ensure the reference data and results of the calculations/estimations are publicly available. Already under MiFID I databases were in place to publish data related to the equity pre-trade transparency requirements. New under MiFID II is the scale of operations. The extension of the MiFID II scope required a brand new system, among other things, for the purposes of the MiFID II equity pre-trade transparency provisions.1 The scale of operations was so great that it resulted in a delay of MiFID II for a year (3 January 2018 instead of 3 January 2017).2 Under MiFID II four databases are of particular relevance for the MiFID II equity pre-trade transparency regime, namely: (1) FIRDS (reference data), (2) FITRS (data for main pre-trade transparency calculations), (3) DVC System (double volume cap), and (4) the SI calculations database (data for SI calculations). Besides these four databases, MiFID II also covers registers for (i) investment firms and (ii) RMs, MTFs (and OTFs), SIs, and data reporting service providers (including APAs and, where authorised, CTPs).3 Focus will be on the four MiFID II databases (not: registers). The reason here is the particular implementation challenges involved with the four databases relevant for the MiFID II equity pre-trade transparency regime.