European Association of CCP Clearing Houses urges European Commission to exclude regulated financial services from DORA ICT services scope

The European Association of CCP Clearing Houses (EACH), together with the Federation of European Securities Exchanges (FESE) and FIA, published a position paper ahead of forthcoming European Commission guidance on whether regulated financial services fall within the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) definition of “ICT services”. The Associations ask the Commission to clarify that financial services provided by EU and non-EU regulated firms to financial entities are not “ICT services” under DORA, warning of implementation, compliance, supervisory and potential anti-competitive impacts if such services are brought into scope. The paper argues that “digital-backed financial services”, where ICT is intrinsically linked to the delivery of a regulated financial service, should remain treated as financial services because they operate within existing governance, risk management and supervisory frameworks. It also urges an expansive exemption that covers third-country regulated providers and related ancillary services (such as give-ups, regulatory reporting and middle office), citing the risk of duplicative oversight, impractical separation of embedded ICT components, and possible market effects including higher costs, reduced access to global markets and potential retaliatory measures by third countries. The Associations also highlight operational challenges if DORA requirements were applied to these services, including exit planning where no viable alternatives exist for certain third-country services and the extension of audit, inspection and access rights that may conflict with confidentiality or local law or disrupt service delivery. The Associations indicate they will continue engaging with the European Commission as it develops its guidance on the scope of “ICT services” under DORA.