EC proposal on cheaper euro transactions and fairer currency conversions step in right direction

Late March the EC published its proposal for cheaper euro transaction costs and fairer currency conversions within the Union. The proposal will considerably reduce fees on transactions, extending the current euro-area regime to...[more]
Icelandic BF Member launches lecture-series on the aftermath of the 2008 crisis, attended by PM Katrin Jakobsdottir!

10 years following the crippling global effects of the financial crisis, long-standing Icelandic BETTER FINANCE member ISA (the Icelandic Savers Association) recently launched a series of lectures and open meetings on the...[more]
BETTER FINANCE congratulates ATM President Octávio Viana for his appointment to ESMA’s CFSC CWG!

Mr. Octávio Viana, President of BETTER FINANCE`s Portuguese member organization ATM, was confirmed as member to the CFSC Consultative Working Group (CWG) of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA). BETTER FINANCE...[more]
Restrictions on Binary Options and CFDs in ESMA effort to Protect Individual Investors

Concluding that Contracts for Differences (CFDs) and binary options do indeed represent a real and significant investor protection concern , the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) in cooperation with National...[more]
Sustainable Finance: BETTER FINANCE President Ensures Individual Investors Have Their Voices Heard

Following the much anticipated release of the EC`s Action Plan on Sustainable Finance on the 8th of March, a High-Level Conference on how best to put the plan into practice took place Thursday last week. BETTER FINANCE`s...[more]
Emerging Shadow Funds, Bringing Shareholder Activism to the Masses?

As previously covered by BETTER FINANCE, shareholder activism is experiencing a new spring. As opposed to the aggressive nature of their forefathers, today`s activists put faith in cooperation and dialogue rather than conflict...[more]
Upcoming ECA Audit of EIOPA; Areas of Focus Identified

In the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis one thing became abundantly clear: the EU was not adequately equipped to ensure the effective cooperation and coordination between national financial supervisory bodies, or the...[more]