Date 01/06/2021 Shedding light on the reality of capital markets in Europe, today’s virtual Convention of the Federation of European Securities Exchanges (FESE) comes at a vital moment for decision makers. In a year in which important regulatory decisions have to be made, the Convention is set around efficient public capital markets and their core role in driving European economic growth, investment and competitiveness – to the benefit of investors and issuers. ESMA’s data1 shows it clearly: Europe is the darkest jurisdiction for equity trading in the world2. Only 52% of equity trading is conducted on-venue, much lower than in the US and Asia, where lit trading accounts for approximately 65% and 88%.