(1) Subject to the provisions of this Regulation, a person shall not act as an investment firm in the State, claim to be an investment firm in the State or represent that the person is an investment firm in the State, unless the person -
(a) is an authorised investment firm, or
(b) is authorised to do so (in accordance with the Directive) by a competent authority in another Member State,
and is acting as authorised.
(2) A person who, immediately before 3 January 2018, is an authorised investment firm under the European Communities (Markets in Financial Instruments) Regulations 2007 (S.I. No.60 of 2007) is deemed, for the purposes of these Regulations, to be an authorised investment firm.
(3) A market operator of a regulated market may operate an MTF or an OTF in the State, subject to the prior verification by the Bank of the market operator's compliance with the provisions of Parts 2 and 3 relating to MTFs and OTFs.
(4) For the purposes of paragraph (1), an investment firm shall not be
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