Cap. 476 Art. 2Interpretation.

(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires -

"accepted market practice" shall have the same meaning assigned to it in Article 3(1)(9) of the Market Abuse Regulation;

"benchmark" shall have the same meaning assigned to it in

Article 3(1)(29) of the Market Abuse Regulation;

"buy-back programmes" shall have the same meaning assigned to it in Article 3(1)(17) of the Market Abuse Regulation;

"Commission Regulation (EU) No. 1031/2010" means Commission Regulation (EU) No. 1031/2010 of 12 November 2010 on the timing, administration and other aspects of auctioning of greenhouse gas emission allowances pursuant to Directive 2003/87/ EC of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing a scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowances trading within the Community; "the competent authority" means the Malta Financial Services Authority established by the Malta Financial Services Authority

Act; "EEA State" means any State which is a contracting party to the agreement on the European Economic Area signed at Oporto on the 2nd May, 1992 as adjusted by the Protocol signed at Brussels on 17th March, 1993 and as amended by any subsequent acts;

"emission allowance" means those instruments specified in point

(11) of Section C of Annex I of MiFID;

"ESMA" means the European Securities and Markets Authority established by Regulation (EU) No. 1095/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of the 24 November 2010; "European regulatory authority" means the single administrative authority appointed by any Member State or EEA State other than Malta, to ensure that the provisions adopted pursuant to the Market Abuse Regulation and the Market Abuse Directive are applied; " "European Union" or "EU" shall have the same meaning assigned to it in article 2 of the European Union Act; "financial instruments" means those instruments specified in Section C of Annex I of MiFID; "implementing measures" means any European Union acts, regulations or directives implementing the Market Abuse Directive and the Market Abuse Regulation, as amended from time to time, including Commission Implementing Directive (EU) 2015/2392 of 17 December 2015 on Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards reporting to competent authorities of actual or potential infringements of that Regulation; "inside information" shall have the same meaning assigned to it in Article 7(1) to (4) of the Market Abuse Regulation; "investment firm" shall have the same meaning assigned to it in Article 3(1)(2) of the Market Abuse Regulation; "issuer" shall have the same meaning assigned to it in Article 3(1)(21) of the Market Abuse Regulation; "market abuse" shall have the same meaning assigned to it in Article 1 of the Market Abuse Regulation; "Market Abuse Directive" shall refer to Directive 2014/57/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 April 2014 on criminal sanctions for market abuse (market abuse directive) and includes any implementing measures issued thereafter;

"Market Abuse Regulation" shall refer to Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 April 2014 on market abuse (market abuse regulation) and repealing Directive 2003/6/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Commission Directives 2003/124/EC, 2003/125/ EC and 2004/72/EC and includes any implementing measures issued thereafter; "Member State" means a Member State of the European Union; "MiFID" means Directive 2014/65/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 on markets in financial instruments and amending Directive 2002/92/EC and Directive 2011/61/EU, as amended from time to time, and includes any implementing measures that have been or may be issued thereunder; "the Minister" means the Minister responsible for the regulation of financial services; "multilateral trading facility" or "MTF" means a multilateral system, operated by an investment firm or a market operator, which brings together multiple third-party buying and selling interests in financial instruments - in the system and in accordance with non-discretionary rules - in a way that results in a contract in accordance with Title II of MiFID;

"organised trading facility" or "OTF" means a multilateral system which is not a regulated market or an MTF and in which multiple third-party buying and selling interests in bonds, structured finance products, emission allowances or derivatives are able to interact in the system in a way that results in a contract in accordance with Title II of MiFID;

"overseas regulatory authority" means any administrative authority or body in a country or territory outside Malta that is not a Member State or EEA State which exercises any regulatory or supervisory function corresponding to a function of the competent authority under this Act in the prevention of financial markets abuse and which has the responsibility to monitor the market and to detect, prevent or prosecute acts related to market abuse; "regulated market" means:

(a) in the case of Malta, a regulated market which has been granted authorisation in terms of the Financial Markets Act and which appears on the list of regulated markets prepared and published by the European Commission in terms of MiFID;

(b) in the case of any other Member State or EEA State, any entity which appears on the list of regulated markets prepared and published by the European Commission in terms of MiFID as defined in Article 3(1)(6) of the Market Abuse Regulation; "Rules" means the Prevention of Financial Markets Abuse Rules issued by the competent authority under this Act or regulations made thereunder;

"spot commodity contract" shall have the same meaning assigned to it in Article 3(1)(15) of the Market Abuse Regulation;

"stabilisation" shall have the same meaning assigned to it in Article 3(2)(d) of the Market Abuse Regulation;

"trading venue" shall have the same meaning assigned to it in Article 3(1)(10) of the Market Abuse Regulation;

"Tribunal" means the Financial Services Tribunal established in terms of article 21 of the Malta Financial Services Authority Act;

"wholesale energy product" shall have the same meaning assigned to it in Article 3(1)(22) of the Market Abuse Regulation.

(2) In this Act and in any regulations or rules made thereunder, if there is any conflict between the English and Maltese texts, the English text shall prevail.

(3) Save where the context otherwise requires, words and expressions used in this Act shall have the same meaning and the same interpretation as the meanings and interpretations given to those words and expressions in the Companies Act.