Join Us on 9 June 2016 for a Webinar Hosted by GFMA Providing Insight on Upcoming Initiatives Relevant to LEI Rollout

Representatives of the LEI Regulatory Oversight Committee, the Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation and the European Securities and Markets Authority update on next milestones

---

---

On 9 June 2016, 8:15 am to 9:30 am EST, the Global Financial Markets Association (GFMA) hosts a webinar providing insight on upcoming initiatives relevant to Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) rollout. To register for the webinar and to obtain background information on the topics that will be addressed in the webinar, refer to the ‘related links’ below.

Participants have the opportunity to receive updates from, and discuss with, Joseph Tracy, Chair of the LEI Regulatory Oversight Committee (LEI ROC), Stephan Wolf, CEO of the Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (GLEIF) as well as GLEIF Board Member Robin Doyle and Giulia Ferraris, Policy Officer at the European Securities and Markets Authority.

The webinar will cover, among others, the following topics:

Collecting data on direct and ultimate parents of legal entities in the Global LEI System – Phase 1

On 10 March 2016 the LEI ROC published a document, entitled ‘Collecting data on direct and ultimate parents of legal entities in the Global LEI System – Phase 1’. The paper “sets forth the policy design of a process for collecting ‘Level 2’ data”, to complement the existing ‘Level 1’ legal entity reference data.

To recap: The LEI is a 20-digit, alpha-numeric code based on the ISO 17442 standard developed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). It connects to key reference information that enables clear and unique identification of legal entities participating in financial transactions. The ISO 17442 standard defines a set of attributes or reference data that are the most essential elements of identification. It specifies the minimum reference data, which must be supplied for each LEI:

• The official name of the legal entity as recorded in the official registers.
• The registered address of that legal entity.
• The country of formation.
• The codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions.
• The date of the first LEI assignment; the date of last update of the LEI information; and the date of expiry, if applicable.

Additional information may be registered as agreed between the legal entity and its LEI issuing organization. The information available with the legal entity reference data to date is referred to as ‘Level 1’ data. It provides the answer to the question of ‘who is who’. The LEI ROC document published in March 2016 describes the process of enhancing the reference data to include the ‘Level 2’ data that will, in addition, answer the question of ‘who owns whom’.

During the webinar, participants will learn more about the approach proposed by the LEI ROC on collecting data on direct and ultimate parents and receive an update on next steps in the project management by GLEIF with the objective of starting implementation around the end of 2016.

Next steps for the GLEIF data quality management program

GLEIF is responsible for monitoring and ensuring high LEI data quality. In cooperation with its partners in the Global LEI System, GLEIF focuses on further optimizing the quality, reliability and usability of LEI data empowering market participants to benefit from the wealth of information available with the LEI population. GLEIF makes available monthly data quality reports, which demonstrate the level of data quality already achieved in the Global LEI System to date.

To clarify the concept of data quality with regard to the LEI population, GLEIF has defined, in close dialogue with the LEI ROC and the LEI issuing organizations, a set of measurable quality criteria using standards developed by ISO. These include criteria such as the completeness, comprehensiveness and integrity of the LEI data records. Instituting a set of defined quality criteria establishes a transparent and objective benchmark to assess the level of data quality within the Global LEI System.

The webinar provides detailed information on the GLEIF data quality management program. Going forward, the GLEIF data quality management program will continue to evolve by gradually implementing previously defined quality criteria and corresponding controls.

How to access and use LEI data: Functionality available with the Global LEI Index

The drivers of the LEI initiative, i.e. the Group of 20, the Financial Stability Board and many regulators around the world, have emphasized the need to make the LEI a broad public good. This is contingent upon ensuring easy access to the global LEI population. GLEIF has published the Global LEI Index. It provides information, updated daily, on all LEIs issued to date. The Global LEI Index, together with the LEI search engine developed by GLEIF, puts the complete LEI data at the disposal of any interested party conveniently and free of charge. With the LEI search tool, GLEIF also makes available key facts, figures and statistics on the global LEI population via interactive graphs and a world map drill down.

The webinar offers an overview of the functionalities already available with the Global LEI Index and highlights additional features now in the pipeline.

Upcoming European Union regulatory initiatives relevant to LEI adoption

Last but not least, the webinar will update on European Union (EU) regulations that will drive expansion of the requirement and use of LEI such as the revised Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II) covering securities markets, investment firms and intermediaries.

On 10 February 2016, the European Commission proposed granting national competent authorities and market participants one additional year to comply with the rules set out in MiFID II. The new deadline is 3 January 2018. According to the EU executive body, the “reason for the extension lies in the complex technical infrastructure that needs to be set up for the MiFID II package to work effectively.”

---