Global Trustee and Fiduciary Services Bite-Sized Issue 8 2026

13 AIFMD CRYPTOASSETS EMIR FINTECH IOSCO MIFID II/MIFIR OPERATIONAL RESILIENCE SUSTAINABLE FINANCE/ESG T+1 ASIA PACIFIC EUROPE NORTH AMERICA UNITED KINGDOM Global Trustee and Fiduciary Services Bite-Sized | Issue 8 | 2026 Quick Links The Commission said the revised standards aim to reduce administrative burdens for EU businesses while maintaining high‑quality disclosures. They build on the Omnibus I simplification package, which streamlined sustainability reporting in the EU and reduced the number of companies within the scope of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). The Commission said the revised ESRS are shorter and clearer, introduce new flexibilities, and streamline key processes. The Commission also notes that the ESRS reduce the number of mandatory datapoints by over 60% and the total number of datapoints by more than 70%. Together, these changes are expected to lower reporting costs by over 30% per company. The Commission said the voluntary reporting standard provides a single, proportionate reference framework for sustainability reporting by smaller companies outside the scope of the CSRD. It will make it easier for companies not covered by the CSRD to respond to specific requests for sustainability information from large financial institutions and companies. It also introduces the value chain cap, meaning that companies subject to the CSRD cannot require companies in their value chains to provide more information than is covered by the voluntary standard. The revised ESRS and the voluntary reporting standard will now be submitted to the European Parliament and the Council for scrutiny. The measures will apply once the two‑month scrutiny period, which can be extended by a further two months, has ended. Link to the Revised European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) and the Voluntary Reporting Standard for Smaller Companies here ESMA Public Statement on the Publication or Distribution of ESG Ratings by Third Parties in the Period from2 July 2026 Until Authorisation, Recognition or Registration of ESG Rating Providers On 1 July 2026, ESMA published a Public Statement on the publication or distribution of ESG ratings by third parties in the period from 2 July 2026 until authorisation, recognition or registration of ESG rating providers. The regulation on the transparency and integrity of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) rating activities (the ESGR Regulation) became applicable on 2 July 2026. It introduced a common regulatory approach aimed at enhancing the integrity, transparency, comparability, responsibility, reliability, good governance, and independence of ESG rating activities. In this regard, the Regulation requires ESG rating providers who are issuing and publishing or distributing ESG ratings in the Union to apply to ESMA for authorisation. Pursuant to Article 51 of the ESGR Regulation, existing ESG rating providers other than small ESG rating providers who wish to continue operating in the Union must notify ESMA of their intention to apply for authorisation by 2 August 2026 and apply for authorisation no later than 2 November 2026. Small ESG rating providers who wish to benefit from the temporary regime must notify ESMA no later than 2 November 2026. ESMA’s public statement also covered areas such as: • Exemption under Article 2(2)(k) of the ESGR Regulation; and • Providing clarity as to whether third parties that are publishing or distributing the ESG ratings of existing, but still unauthorised, ESG rating providers will be able to continue doing so from 2 July 2026. After 2 November 2026, ESMA states that it will no longer be possible for third parties to publish or distribute the ESG ratings of an ESG rating provider, unless such provider: i. Has applied for authorisation or recognition, or has submitted a notification for registration under the temporary regime for small ESG rating providers; and ii. Is listed in the Article 14 register that will become available on the ESMA website. ESMA states that, after 2 November 2026, third parties should consult this register to determine the identities of the ESG rating providers fromwhich it will be possible to continue to publish or distribute ESG ratings. Link to Public Statement here