The European Fund and Asset Management Association has criticised the final compromise text of the European Union Retail Investment Strategy endorsed by Member States in the Council of the EU, arguing that it fails to address the core goal of increasing retail participation in capital markets. In its statement, EFAMA said the text does not remove existing barriers or simplify the customer journey and instead introduces more complex and ambiguous requirements that could raise operational costs for the financial industry with little added value for end investors. EFAMA said a particular risk lies in the extensive forthcoming Level 2 technical standards, which will define crucial parts of the framework and will be decisive for whether the legislation can be implemented in a workable way. It called on the European Commission and the European Supervisory Authorities to make that phase simple, proportionate and practical, and warned against adding further overly complex and prescriptive requirements. The file now moves to the European Parliament for endorsement.
European Fund and Asset Management Association2026-06-09
European Fund and Asset Management Association criticises Retail Investment Strategy compromise and urges simpler Level 2 rules
The European Fund and Asset Management Association has criticised the final compromise text of the EU Retail Investment Strategy endorsed by Member States, arguing it fails to boost retail participation, remove barriers or simplify the customer journey, and instead adds complex, ambiguous requirements that may raise industry costs with limited benefit for investors. EFAMA highlighted risks from extensive forthcoming Level 2 technical standards and urged the European Commission and European Supervisory Authorities to keep them simple, proportionate and practical. The file now moves to the European Parliament for endorsement.