Capital Markets Participants Identify Key Gaps in the European Consolidated Tape Project

Capital Markets, 21 October 2025 - The establishment of a European Consolidated Tape (CT) for equities and ETFs marks a major milestone for European capital markets. Its objective is to enhance transparency, efficiency, and the availability of pre- and post-trade market data across the continent.

In this context, EFAMA, EPTA, and Adamantia – a Protiviti company have recently sent a joint letter to ESMA and the European Commission, identifying several key gaps in the current framework and putting forward practical recommendations to ensure the success of the future Consolidated Tape for equities and ETFs.

A well-designed and effectively governed Consolidated Tape will enable investors to make more informed decisions, in line with the objectives of the Savings and Investment Union (SIU).

Key Recommendations

Expand pre-trade quote depth to five price and volume levels to improve liquidity visibility, support more efficient execution decisions, and foster the growth of secondary markets.

Identify trading venues in pre-trade data to build trust, enhance best execution, reduce information asymmetry, strengthen competition, and increase visibility for mid-sized or local venues.

Include ETCs (Exchange-Traded Commodities) and ETNs (Exchange-Traded Notes) — traded on the same venues as ETFs — to prevent data fragmentation and additional market complexity.

Encourage participation of smaller trading venues that currently have the option to opt out, ensuring that the Consolidated Tape reflects the diversity of liquidity sources and investor types across Europe.

Establish robust governance, including representation from the data user community within key decision-making bodies, particularly on matters of pricing, data content, latency, and access.

These proposals aim to ensure that the Consolidated Tape fully meets its objectives of transparency, efficiency, and fairness across European markets.

Policymakers now have a unique opportunity to integrate these recommendations into the upcoming legislative package for the Savings and Investment Union (SIU).

List of recommendations

About the Contributing Organisations

Adamantia – a Protiviti company is part of Protiviti, an international consulting firm operating in over 25 countries. We support financial institutions with advisory and management solutions across finance, technology, operations, data, digital transformation, risk, and internal audit.

Our Capital Markets teams provide deep expertise to financial market participants, helping them navigate an ever-evolving regulatory environment and strengthen their data governance.

The European Principal Traders Association (EPTA) represents leading proprietary trading firms in Europe and the UK. Its members provide liquidity across all asset classes — equities, bonds, derivatives, ETFs, and digital assets — and advocate for efficient, resilient, and transparent European markets.

The European Fund and Asset Management Association (EFAMA) represents the European investment management industry, promoting a regulatory environment that safeguards investors and enhances market efficiency.