PART 1 General

Citation, commencement and extent

1. —(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Benchmarks (Provision of Information and Documents) Regulations 2021 and come into force on 9th August 2021.

(2) These Regulations extend to England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Interpretation

2. In these Regulations—

“ the Benchmarks Regulation ” means Regulation (EU) 2016/1011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2016 on indices used as benchmarks in financial instruments and financial contracts or to measure the performance of investment funds;

“ the FCA ” means the Financial Conduct Authority.

PART 2 Provision of information and documents – critical benchmarks

Application of Part

4. This Part applies for the purposes of—

(a) in Article 22A of the Benchmarks Regulation (assessment of representativeness of critical benchmarks: administrator) —

(i) a notice given by the FCA to an administrator under paragraph 3 or 11;

(ii) a permission given by the FCA to an administrator under paragraph 9;

(b) in Article 22B of that Regulation (assessment of representativeness of critical benchmarks: FCA) , a notice given by the FCA to an administrator under paragraph 3;

(c) in Article 23A of that Regulation (designation of certain critical benchmarks) , a notice given by the FCA to an administrator under paragraph 1(b), 4, 7 or 9;

(d) in Article 23D of that Regulation (orderly cessation of Article 23A benchmarks) , a notice given by the FCA to an administrator under paragraph 2 or 8(b).

Provision of an address to which information or a document may be sent electronically

5. —(1) An administrator of a critical benchmark—

(a) must provide the FCA with an email address to which a notice or permission to which this Part applies may be sent;

(b) may provide the FCA with an address (other than an email address) to which such a notice or permission may, with the written agreement of the FCA, be sent electronically.

(2) An address provided in accordance with paragraph (1) must be provided—

(a) where the benchmark is listed in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/1368 of 11 August 2016 establishing a list of critical benchmarks used in financial markets pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2016/1011 of the European Parliament and of the Council, before 14 August 2021;

(b) where regulations are made specifying the benchmark as critical under paragraph 5 or 6 of Article 20A, or paragraph 5 of Article 20, of the Benchmarks Regulation, within five working days beginning with the day on which those regulations come into force.

(3) The administrator may provide a different address in substitution for one provided in accordance with paragraph (1).

(4) An address provided under paragraph (3) must be provided no less than five working days before the day on which the administrator intends the substitution to take effect.

(5) The conditions in paragraph (1) apply in respect of such an address as they apply to an address provided in accordance with that paragraph.

Date on which information or a document is treated as having been received

6. A notice or permission sent by the FCA to an administrator at an address provided in accordance with regulation 5 shall be deemed to have been received—

(a) in respect of a notice or permission referred to in regulation 4(a) to (c)—

(i) if sent on a working day before 5 p.m., on that day;

(ii) otherwise, on the following working day;

(b) in respect of a notice referred to in regulation 4(d)—

(i) if sent before 5 p.m., on the day on which it is sent;

(ii) otherwise, on the following day.