A European parliament committee has approved a proposal for new EU share trading rules that will allow investment banks to compete with stock exchanges, updating part of the 1993 investment services directive (ISD).

The proposal allows investment banks to compete with stock exchanges across the EU, but they will have to disclose prices for retail orders before they are executed. This requirement was strongly criticised by banks and the UK which argued that pre-trade disclosure would kill off in-house trading activity and result in higher costs for investors.