Market Abuse
The Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) prohibits insider dealing, unlawful disclosure of inside information, and market manipulation. Inside information is precise, non-public information likely to have a significant effect on price. Candidates must know the dealing prohibitions, the disclosure duty for issuers, the insider list requirement, and the managers' transactions notification threshold. Market manipulation includes false or misleading transactions, price positioning, and abusive algorithms.
Suspicious transaction and order reports (STORs) must be filed with the FSC without delay. Traps include treating rumours as always lawful (they may be manipulation if false and misleading), confusing inside information with merely confidential information, and forgetting the issuer's duty to disclose inside information as soon as possible. Another trap: assuming a legitimate reason defeats manipulation charges when the conduct is still abusive.
Rule of thumb: inside information is precise, non-public and price-sensitive; all three elements must be present.
Worked example: an employee learns of an unannounced takeover and buys shares before the announcement. This is insider dealing; the firm must also file a STOR if it suspects the trade, and the individual faces FSC sanctions and possible criminal liability.