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ESMA

ESMA

European Securities and Markets Authority

Medium Impact

ESMA publishes final RTS on CCP admission criteria elements under EMIR 3

Published

Jul 8, 2026

Topics

EMIR 3, Central counterparties, CCP membership, Clearing member admission criteria, Non-financial counterparties, Sponsored membership, Regulatory technical standards

Executive Summary

ESMA has published its Final Report on Regulatory Technical Standards concerning elements that central counterparties should consider when establishing admission criteria for clearing members under the EMIR 3 review. The publication is an important Level 2 development for CCP membership governance, but it is not yet the final binding EU law: ESMA states that the RTS will now be submitted to the European Commission for endorsement and will then be subject to scrutiny by the European Parliament and the Council. The standards do not prescribe the actual admission criteria that each CCP must apply; instead, they define the elements to be considered, including for non-financial counterparties acting as clearing members and sponsored membership models. Business impact is therefore preparatory and governance-focused. CCPs should map existing rulebook, onboarding, due diligence and membership review controls against the ESMA RTS package, while clearing members and prospective NFC participants should monitor how CCPs may update membership rules after the EU adoption process is completed.

What Changed

newFinal RTS package published by ESMA

Previous

ESMA had consulted publicly on draft RTS for CCP participation requirements.

New

ESMA has finalised the RTS package and will submit it to the European Commission for endorsement.

modifiedFocus on elements to consider, not fixed admission criteria

Previous

CCPs were subject to EMIR participation requirements as amended by EMIR 3, with Level 2 detail still under development.

New

The ESMA RTS specify the elements for CCP consideration while leaving the actual admission criteria to CCPs.

newNFC clearing member considerations included

Previous

The supplied source does not identify finalised RTS elements for NFC clearing members before this Final Report.

New

NFC clearing member considerations are part of the final ESMA RTS package.

newSponsored membership models covered

Previous

The supplied source does not identify finalised RTS elements for sponsored membership models before this Final Report.

New

Sponsored membership model considerations are included in the final ESMA RTS package.

modifiedEU adoption process still pending

Previous

Draft RTS were subject to ESMA consultation and public hearing.

New

The RTS move to the European Commission endorsement stage, followed by European Parliament and Council scrutiny.

Business Impact

Who is affected

Directly affected

CCPs establishing or revising admission criteria for clearing members, including arrangements involving non-financial counterparties and sponsored membership models.

Indirectly affected

clearing members, non-financial counterparties considering clearing membership, sponsors or agents in sponsored membership structures, and firms that rely on CCP access rules for clearing strategy.

Jurisdictions

European Union

Business processes

CCP rulebook and membership criteria governance, Clearing member onboarding and admission due diligence, Periodic clearing member eligibility review, NFC clearing member assessment processes, Sponsored membership model governance, Regulatory change management for EMIR 3 Level 2 measures

Estimated effort

Medium

Compliance risk

Medium

Affected Reports

CCP admission criteria policy and rulebook controlClearing member onboarding and eligibility review checklistNFC clearing member assessment controlSponsored membership model governance documentationEMIR 3 RTS regulatory change tracker
FieldValidation rule

Recommended Actions

6 suggested next steps· derived from source analysis
  1. 1
    AI generatedStep 1 of 6

    CCPs should perform a gap assessment between current admission criteria governance and the ESMA RTS themes before Commission endorsement is completed.

  2. 2
    AI generatedStep 2 of 6

    Review whether existing onboarding and periodic review procedures adequately evidence the elements considered when admitting clearing members.

  3. 3
    AI generatedStep 3 of 6

    Identify all current or prospective NFC clearing member arrangements and confirm that assessment records are sufficiently documented for future RTS alignment.

  4. 4
    AI generatedStep 4 of 6

    Inventory sponsored membership models and determine whether rulebook, legal, risk and operational controls may require amendment after adoption.

  5. 5
    AI generatedStep 5 of 6

    Clearing members and prospective NFC participants should monitor CCP rulebook consultations and membership notices triggered by the final RTS adoption process.

  6. 6
    AI generatedStep 6 of 6

    Maintain a regulatory-change watch for Commission endorsement, Parliament/Council scrutiny and any final Official Journal publication before setting a binding implementation date.

Timeline

other

Date not specified

ESMA conducted a public consultation on the draft RTS concerning CCP participation requirements and admission criteria elements.

other

Nov 1, 2025

ESMA held a public hearing on the draft RTS.

Sources

AI-generated analysis is based on the following primary sources. Always verify against the official publication.

Related Evidence

Verified source support for this analysis

The evidence agent checks whether the drafted finding is supported by official publications and relevant public source material.

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