Marktsondierung nach dem neuen Marktmissbrauchsrecht

Contacting potential investors for the preparation of a capital market transaction before its public announcement is very important for issuers and banks. So-called market soundings allow for an early assessment and consideration of the capital market’s demand. However, the disclosure of confidential details about a planned transaction can also lead to the infringement of insider rules. For the first time, the Market Abuse Regulation contains a European regulation for market soundings. Art. 11 MAR permits the disclosure of inside information for the purpose of market soundings, if certain requirements are fulfilled. This first comprehensive study of Art. 11 MAR analyses whether the new regulation is suited for the intended encouragement of market soundings and for the prevention of market abuse. This study classifies the regulation within German legal dogmatics and analyses its deficits with respect to legal practice based on expert interviews.