(1) The following persons are eligible to apply for admission to bid directly in auctions -

(a) an operator or an aircraft operator having an operator holding account or an aircraft operator holding account, bidding on its own account, including any parent undertaking, subsidiary undertaking or affiliated undertaking forming part of the same group as the operator or the aircraft operator;

(b) investment firms which -

(i) have permission under Part 4A of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 [2000 c. 8. Part 4A was substituted for the original Part 4 by s. 11(2) of the Financial Services Act 2012 (c. 21).] to carry on regulated activities relating to investment services and activities, bidding on their own account or on behalf of their clients; and

(ii) would require authorisation under Directive 2014/65/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council on markets in financial instruments [OJ L173, 12.6.2014, p.349.] (as that directive applied in the European Union immediately before IP completion day) if they had their head office in an EEA state;

(ba) investment firms which -