Regulatory guidelines from the European Securities and Markets Authority regarding the use of AI and Machine Learning in financial markets.
Updated in early 2026, these expectations focus on algorithmic trading and investment services. ESMA mandates that financial firms maintain human-in-the-loop oversight, rigorous pre-trade controls (PTCs), and clear documentation of model calibration to prevent market manipulation or flash crashes caused by autonomous trading agents.
A hedge fund using a high-frequency ML model for trade execution must document its kill-switch protocols and bias-testing results to satisfy an ESMA-aligned audit by a national regulator.
