The French regulator has taken the lead with its recent consultation on the debate over implementing European regulations separating brokerage commissions from the payment for research.

Small-cap stocks have long been a neglected corner of the market for investment analysts, but industry sources have mixed views over whether unbundling research from brokerage commissions will improve or worsen the situation.

Untangling the UK from the EU will be very complex from a regulatory perspective, as will any trade negotiations after the two go their separate ways. It is against this backdrop that the Financial Services Negotiation Forum was launched to plug knowledge gaps with fact-based research.

Non-performing loans are a blight on the Eurozone’s financial system and a drag on its economy. However, disparate national regimes and the EU’s own rules are slowing down the clean-up process.