Home FCA Handbook SSR SSR 5 SSR 5.14 Guidance on activities that fall within paragraph (a) of the Glossary definition of market making activities: posting firm, simultaneous 2-way quotes
You are viewing SSR 5.14 Guidance on activities that fall within paragraph (a) of the Glossary definition of market making activities: posting firm, simultaneous 2-way quotes as of . SSR 5.14 Guidance on activities that fall within paragraph (a) of the Glossary definition of market making activities: posting firm, simultaneous 2-way quotes was last updated on 13/07/2026.

SSR 5.14 Guidance on activities that fall within paragraph (a) of the Glossary definition of market making activities: posting firm, simultaneous 2-way quotes

13/07/2026G

To demonstrate that a person’s market making activities involve posting firm, simultaneous 2-way quotes, a person should provide evidence upon request from the FCA that it follows SSR 5.14.2G to SSR 5.17.

13/07/2026G
  1. (1) Regarding the reference to ‘providing liquidity on an ongoing basis’ in the Glossary definition of market making activities, a person undertaking market making activities should be present on the order book or be posting quotes on a trading venue for the relevant financial instruments in respect of which it is relying on the market maker exemption for a sufficient proportion of the mandatory trading period. In this regard, for the purposes of SSR, paragraph (a) of the Glossary definition of market making activities does not require an uninterrupted presence, though it provides that the presence should be regular and ongoing.
  2. (2) Presence on the market should consist of:
    1. (a) conducting market making activities each day the market is open; and
    2. (b) submitting orders that meet the criteria in SSR 5.15.1G, SSR 5.16.1G and SSR 5.17.1G according to a reasonable frequency – that is, not interrupting the person’s market making activity for a significant period of time during a single trading session.
13/07/2026G

As regards ‘posting firm, simultaneous 2-way quotes of comparable size and at competitive prices’ within paragraph (a) of the Glossary definition of market making activities, for the purposes of SSR: 

  1. (1) the FCA considers that the bid–ask range proposed by the person conducting market making activities can be asymmetrical, in that it can be moved away from the central point of the market bid–ask range being posted for the relevant financial instrument;
  2. (2) the competitiveness of the prices can be different on bid and ask at a given time according to the directional side of the person’s strategy, as long as the person undertaking market making activities complies with the aim of providing liquidity to the market; and
  3. (3) in any case, the potential asymmetry should not result in either the bid or the ask price not being competitive.