Short Selling in the UK - The New Regime for FCA Authorised Firms

Introduction

Short selling is the practice of selling a security that is borrowed or not owned by the seller with the intention of repurchasing it later at a lower price to make a profit.

The EU Short Selling Regulation was introduced in 2012 to respond to concerns regarding the short selling of shares in financial institutions and of euro area sovereign debt, as well as a lack of information and transparency to the market and authorities with regard to the effect of short selling on prices and ultimately, financial stability.

The Short Selling Regulations 2025 establish a new legislative framework for short selling in the UK, replacing the regime that was inherited from the EU post-Brexit.

The Financial Conduct Authority (‘FCA’) has been given new rulemaking powers as well as powers to intervene in exceptional circumstances.

This new virtual classroom seminar will explore the EU regime and what is changing under the new UK framework.

It will also look at the FCA’s proposals for putting the Short Selling Regulations into practice and consider how the UK and EU are likely to diverge in this area, how their regimes differ from the approaches taken in other parts of the world, and what this means for practitioners.

What You Will Learn

This live and interactive course will cover the following:

• The background to the EU short selling regime and how it has developed
• How the Short Selling Regulations 2025 will change the short selling regime in the UK
• The FCA’s rulemaking proposals and how they will implement the new short selling regime in practice
• What securities and activities will be covered by the new regime in the UK, and the new disclosure and other requirements
• How the FCA is likely to intervene in exceptional circumstances
• What this means for practitioners and how the UK and EU are likely to diverge in future
• How the UK and EU regimes differ from the approach to short selling in other jurisdictions

Recording of live sessions: Soon after the Learn Live session has taken place you will be able to go back and access the recording - should you wish to revisit the material discussed.