The Belgian Financial Services and Markets Authority has published Communication FSMA 2021 08 about some guidelines from the European Securities and Markets Authority regarding firms' obligation to disclose various things in line with the European Union's Prospectus Regulation and also about its forthcoming implementation of them.

Pursuant to Article 16 of the ESMA Regulation, ESMA may issue guidelines to the competent authorities or financial market participants with a view to establishing consistent supervisory practices, the better to enforce European Union law. According to paragraph 3 of Article 16, "competent authorities and financial market participants must make every effort to comply with those guidelines" and "each competent authority must, within two months of a guideline...has been given, confirm whether it complies with or intends to...follow that guideline. When a competent authority does not comply or does not intend to follow [that], it shall [tell] ESMA, stating the reasons."

The new guidelines are based on Article 20 (12) of the Prospectus Regulation and Article 16 (1) of the ESMA Regulation. The FSMA has decided to incorporate these guidelines, where necessary, into its supervision and to take them into consideration when carrying out its audit of any prospectus in accordance with Article 20 of the Prospectus Regulation.