French Monetary and Financial Code
In forceOnly the following may join clearing houses
1. Credit institutions and investment firms having their registered office in France as well as branches established on French territory of credit institutions having their registered office or, in the absence of a registered office, their effective management in a State which is neither a member of the European Union nor a party to the Agreement on the European Economic Area;
2. Credit institutions and investment firms having their registered office or, in the absence of a registered office, their effective management in a Member State of the European Union or in a State party to the Agreement on the European Economic Area other than France;
3. Legal entities whose members or associates are indefinitely and jointly and severally liable for their debts and commitments, provided that these members or associates are institutions or companies mentioned in 1 and 2 above;
4. Legal entities having their registered office in mainland France or in the overseas departments or the Department of Mayotte or in Saint-Barthélemy or Saint-Martin and whose principal or sole purpose is the clearing of financial instruments;
5. In accordance with the conditions laid down in the General Regulations of the Autorité des marchés financiers, credit institutions and investment firms other than those mentioned in 1 and 2, as well as legal entities whose principal or sole purpose is the clearing of financial instruments and which are not established in mainland France or in the overseas departments or the Department of Mayotte or in Saint-Barthélemy or Saint-Martin.
6. International financial organisations or bodies, other public bodies as well as controlled companies operating under a State guarantee, which are not persons mentioned in 1 to 5, designated on an individual basis or by category by an order of the Minister responsible for the economy, as well as central banks.
7. Bodies or undertakings, other than those referred to in 1 to 6, supervised by the Autorité des marchés financiers or the Autorité de contrôle prudentiel et de résolution or by equivalent authorities in another Member State of the European Union or party to the Agreement on the European Economic Area or in a third country appearing on a list drawn up by the Minister responsible for the economy, provided, on the one hand, that their membership is justified in terms of systemic risk and, on the other hand, that at least three participants in the clearing house concerned fall into the categories of credit institutions, investment firms, public bodies or controlled undertakings operating under State guarantee. These conditions are specified by decree. These organisations or undertakings do not have the status of participant within the meaning of 3° of II of Article L. 330-1 for systems other than the one managed by the clearing house to which they belong.
The persons referred to in 1 to 4 of this article and those referred to in 7 which are supervised by counterpart authorities of a Member State of the European Union or a party to the Agreement on the European Economic Area are subject, for their activity of clearing financial instruments, to the legislative and regulatory obligations and to the rules on supervision and sanctions laid down by this code for investment service providers. The legal entities referred to in 3 and 4 are subject to the authorisation rules laid down by this Code for investment firms. The persons referred to in 1 who wish to clear the transactions of other members of a regulated market or a multilateral trading facility are subject to an authorisation issued as part of their authorisation as a credit institution or investment firm.
The persons referred to in point 5 and those referred to in point 7 who are supervised by counterpart authorities in a third country appearing on a list drawn up by the Minister for the Economy must be subject in their home country to clearing and control rules comparable to those in force in France. The Autorité des marchés financiers shall exercise the supervisory and sanctioning powers provided for in this Code for investment service providers in respect of these organisations, taking into account the supervision exercised by the competent authorities of each State concerned.
The relationship between a clearing house and its members is contractual.
Access by credit institutions and investment firms having their registered office or, in the absence of a registered office, their effective management in another Member State of the European Union or party to the Agreement on the European Economic Area, is subject to the same non-discriminatory, transparent and objective criteria as those that apply to clearing members having their registered office in France.
