COVID-19 Coverage: Market Closures/Restrictions

Fiduciary Governance Blog • March 17, 2020 March 23, 2020 • News • Tags: COVID-19

Philippines

Market closure. Philippine stock exchange closed Tuesday, March 17, 2020.
According to Philippine stock exchange chief, he plans to reopen the exchange on Thursday, March 19, 2020.
Bankers Association of the Philippines targets to re-open trading of foreign exchange and bonds on Wednesday, March 18, 2020.

Sri Lanka

Market closure. Colombo Stock Exchange closed Tuesday, March 17, 2020.
Government declared a holiday asking all non-essential businesses not to operate on March 17-19, 2020.
A decision on whether the exchange will be open March 18 and 19 during the remaining two days of the government declared holiday is expected March 17, 2020.

Australia

Restrictions on trading. Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) has issued directions under the ASIC Market Integrity Rules to a number of large equity market participants, requiring those participants to limit the number of trades executed each day until further notice. These directions require those firms to reduce their number of executed trades by up to 25% from the levels executed on Friday.

France

Restrictions on short selling. France’s Autorité des Marchés Financiers banned short selling in 92 shares, those most impacted during Monday’s (March 16, 2020) sell-off, until the end of Tuesday’s (March 17, 20202) trading session.

Italy

Restrictions on short selling. Financial market authority Consob has prohibited short sales on 20 stocks for the trading session of March 17, 2020.

Spain

Restrictions on short selling. Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores (CNMV) has forbidden market players to build new net short positions in all Spanish shares or to increase existing ones for one month, effective March 17, 2020. This ban can be renewed for three-months periods if necessary. In addition to Spanish stocks, the ban also applies to index-linked products, spots, derivatives as well as over-the-counter transactions.

European Union

Restrictions on short selling. The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), on Tuesday, March 17, 2020 began forcing greater transparency of short positions by halving the threshold at which they must be disclosed.

United Kingdom

Restrictions on short selling. The U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) also issued a temporary ban on the shorting of 37 Belgian and Italian stocks following moves from respective regulators in both countries. The ban was effective March 17, 2020 until the end of the day March 17, 2020.

Belgium

Restrictions on short selling. Belgian regulator, the Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA), announced a ban on shorts for a basket of stocks during Tuesday’s (March 17, 2020) trade in order to avoid what it termed a “disorderly decline” in markets.

Kuwait

Market closure. Trading closed on March 12, 2020 and resumed on March 15, 2020 to address the fast-paced changes and turbulence facing the local exchange market, as well as regional and international exchanges, as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak.

Sara P. Crovitz

Sara Crovitz, most recently Deputy Chief Counsel and Associate Director of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Investment Management, provides counsel on all aspects of investment company and investment adviser regulation. She worked at the SEC for 21 years, including 17 years in the Division of Investment Management focusing on issues under the Investment Company and Investment Advisers Acts of 1940. While in the Division, Sara supervised the provision of significant legal guidance to the investment management industry through no-action and interpretive letters, exemptive applications, IM guidance updates and other written and oral means.

William T. Mandia

William Mandia represents financial institutions and insurers in complex commercial and class action litigation. He regularly defends and advises life insurers, intermediaries, banks, broker-dealers, investment advisers, and other financial services providers in connection with sales practices claims arising from a wide range of financial and life insurance products, including, but not limited to, claims for alleged breach of fiduciary duty, fraud, and violations of state consumer protection laws.

Peter M. Hong

Peter Hong uses his many years of service at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to guide clients through the various regulatory requirements involved in the offer of financial services and products. His practice includes the registration and regulation of investment advisers, broker-dealers, commodity trading advisers, commodity pool operators, and introducing brokers under federal and state laws, as well as the formation and ongoing compliance obligations of registered and private investment companies.