'' Our Federation represents approximately 300,000 financial services

intermediaries operating across the 27 EU Member States

(www.fecif.org).

As much as we welcome the legislative proposals of the European

Commission on establishing a new institutional framework for

financial supervision in the EU and as much we share the

Commission’s objectives to enhance financial architecture in the EU

in an ambitious way, upgrading the quality and consistency of

supervision, we are extremely worried that financial intermediaries

(600,000 to 650,000 professionals today) representing and servicing

50 to 100 millions EU consumers may be excluded from the

management process of the new three Supervisory Authorities

(ESMA, EBA and EIOPA – “ESA’s”) which will be set up.

We are ready to actively contribute to further refinements of the

legislative proposals and to provide our input into building effective

new Supervisory Authorities with appropriate participation of the

representative of the industry. It will help a better implementation –

better understanding – of EU rules, and create a stronger image of

the EU amongst the Public.

People who know how the system works, representatives of the real

economy would add value to the work of the regulators.

Therefore, we have few general comments:

1. The plan raises questions regarding the institutional balance

within the EU: FECIF emphasizes that the Commission must

continue to fulfill its duties as guardian of Treaty guaranteed

freedoms, in particular freedom to provide services and

freedom of establishment, and to act as the spokesman for the

Community, as opposed to national interest.

2. This means that the Commission must not abdicate or

delegate its traditional roles. Similarly, FECIF calls upon the

Commission to reiterate its support for Single Market freedoms,

the principle of home-country control and the single licence and

passport regimes and, therefore, to condemn any attempt by

host States to “re-nationalize” supervisory competence.

3. Cross-border operators need to know that the Commission will

act upon complaints from individual companies and, where

necessary, will promptly institute infringement proceedings

against Member States.

4. The new architecture will be expensive, as will the proposals

which will accompany it; it should not be at the cost of the

creativity and dynamism of cross-border providers. Needless to

say that harmonized rules which set maximum standards and

should so prevent “gold-plating” by national authorities are a

preferable outcome to the “…differences in the national

transposition of Community Law stemming from exceptions,

derogations, additions or ambiguities in current Directives”.

5. FECIF agrees that these differences and exceptions must be

identified and removed, in particular with regard to precontractual

and contractual information disclosures.

6. Where a high standard is set Community-wide (taking into

account the specific features of each financial sector’s

services), no exceptions, derogations or other national

provisions are required.

7. At present, FECIF members often find that national differences,

derogations and other measures render access to a host State

market unnecessarily and unjustifiably difficult, expensive and

slow.

We reiterate the concerns expressed by EU intermediaries that, faced

with a preponderance of the banking sector, the ESA’s must also be

aware of the intermediaries’ perspective.

FECIF agrees to publication of this letter.

Yours sincerely,

Vincent J.Derudder

Secretary General'