Cap. 370 Art. 17FCo-operation with overseasregulatory authorities.

(1) Co-operation agreements with overseas regulatory authorities or other authorities, bodies and natural or legal persons in countries that are not Member States or EEA States may be entered into only if the information disclosed is subject to guarantees of professional secrecy at least equivalent to those required under article 26. Such exchange of information must be intended for the performance of the functions of those overseas regulatory authorities or other authorities, bodies and natural or legal persons: Provided that the transfer of personal data to countries that are not Member States or EEA States shall be in accordance with the provisions of Chapter IV of Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 October 1995 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data.

(2) The competent authority may conclude cooperation agreements providing for the exchange of information with overseas regulatory authorities, other authorities or with bodies and natural or legal persons in countries that are not Member States or EEA States responsible for:

(i) the supervision of credit institutions, other financial organisations, persons holding a licence, insurance undertakings, financial institutions and financial markets, including financial entities licensed to operate as central counterparties where central counterparties have been recognised under Article 25 of Regulation

(EU) No. 648/2012;

(ii) the liquidation and bankruptcy of persons holding a licence or an equivalent authorisation and other similar procedures;

(iii) carrying out statutory audits of the accounts of persons holding a licence or an equivalent authorisation and other financial institutions, credit institutions and insurance undertakings, in the performance of their supervisory functions, or which administer compensation schemes, in the performance of their functions;

(iv) overseeing the bodies involved in the liquidation and bankruptcy of persons holding a licence or an equivalent authorisation and other similar procedures;

(v) overseeing persons charged with carrying out statutory audits of the accounts of insurance undertakings, persons holding a licence or an equivalent authorisation, credit institutions and other financial institutions: Provided that, for the purposes of this paragraph, the term "financial insitutions" means both financial institutions as defined in point (26) of Article 4(1) of the CRR and as defined in point (14) of Article 4(1) of the IFR;

(vi) overseeing persons active on emission allowance markets for the purpose of ensuring a consolidated overview of financial and spot markets;

(vii) overseeing persons active on agricultural commodity derivatives markets for the purpose of ensuring a consolidated overview of financial and spot markets.

(3) Where the information in the possession of the competent authority had originated from a European regulatory authority or an overseas regulatory authority, it may not be disclosed to an overseas regulatory authority or to any other third party without the express agreement of the European regulatory authority or the overseas regulatory authority which had transmitted it and, where appropriate, solely for the purposes for which that authority had given its agreement.

(4) Without prejudice to the foregoing provisions of this article, at the request of, or for the purposes of assisting an overseas regulatory authority, the competent authority may exercise the powers listed in article 17(13), and for the purposes of this sub-article the words "European regulatory authority" shall be read as "overseas regulatory authority".