The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority has published a newsletter for primary market participants seeking feedback on draft best practice guidance for government departments, industry regulators and public bodies on the identification, control and disclosure of inside information. Comments on the best practice note should be submitted by January 15, 2020.

The FCA determined that new, up-to-date guidance on inside information was required to reflect recent legal and regulatory developments, including the introduction of the Market Abuse Regulation in July 2016. Certain of these developments are directly applicable to the actions of government departments, industry regulators and public bodies. The guidance is targeted at these entities and feedback on the guidance is therefore sought particularly from them. The note sets out certain relevant aspects of the Market Abuse Regulation and provides suggestions for how these entities can identify inside information that they become privy to, including questioning whether the information has been made public, whether it is precise and whether a reasonable investor might use it as part of the basis of an investment decision. It also provides suggestions on controlling and handling inside information once it has been identified and on the systems and controls that should be adopted around disclosing the information.

View the FCA's guidance.

[View source.]