Osborne Clarke analyses crowdfunding market barriers for FISMA report
Published on 16th Mar 2018
Findings provide the basis for crowdfunding regulation on a European level
International legal practice Osborne Clarke has worked with the European Crowdfunding Network (ECN) to co-edit the study: “Identifying market and regulatory obstacles to cross-border development of crowdfunding in the EU.” The so-called FISMA report was conducted on behalf of the EU Commission’s Directorate General on Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union (DG FISMA).
The report analyses the market and regulatory barriers for cross-border crowdfunding in the EU and looks at consumer and investor protection as well as tax. It finds that a patchwork of national regulations and a lack of investment are likely to be the greatest obstacles for cross-border crowdfunding. Additionally platforms tend to avoid the different regulations in the member states.
The study is based on the third edition of the ECN Crowdfunding Review 2017 and puts the legal obstacles for an EU-wide crowdfunding market in a broader context. The selected EU member states were analysed in the areas of regulation, consumer and investor protection and tax.
Along with a German team – led by Partner Tanja Aschenbeck-Florange, Dr Ulrike Bär and Thorge Drefke, legal experts across Osborne Clarke’s UK, Netherlands, French, Italian and Spanish offices contributed to the study.
Lead Partner Tanja Aschenbeck-Florange commented:
“The report analyses legal and actual market barriers for cross-border crowdfunding. A consistent regulation would ensure greater access to the capital market for start-ups and SME.”
Along with the European Crowdfunding Network Tanja Aschenbeck has initiated and published the Europe-wide ECN series of studies on the treatment of crowd funding under financial supervisory law in 2013 and 2014.
The FISMA report was the basis for, amongst others, the first optional crowdfunding regulation on a European level. This was explicitly referred to by the European Commission and presented on 8 March 2018 in Brussels.
The report can be downloaded here or on the ECN website.
