Art. 1 Definitions | RTS on market abuse | MiCA

This is the definitions article, establishing the key terms used throughout the regulation.

It lays the groundwork for all subsequent obligations by clarifying the precise meaning of four core concepts that are central to the regulation's subject matter: the STOR itself, electronic means, group, and order.

Notably, the definition of "order" is intentionally broad, and the STOR definition extends beyond just transactions to cover aspects of distributed ledger technology (DLT) functioning — a scope that directly shapes the monitoring and reporting obligations found in the articles that follow.

Important points:

A STOR covers not only suspicious transactions and orders (including cancellations and modifications) but also other aspects of DLT functioning where market abuse may be indicated.
The definition of "order" is deliberately wide, capturing every quote and any action taken in relation to an order, regardless of type or stage.
The definition of "group" is imported directly from Directive 2013/34/EU, linking this regulation to an existing EU legal framework.

For the purposes of this Regulation, the following definitions shall apply:

‘suspicious transaction and order report’ (STOR) means the report on suspicious orders or transactions, including any cancellation or modification thereof, and other aspects of functioning of the DLT where circumstances might exist indicating that market abuse has been committed, is being committed or is likely to be committed.
‘electronic means’ are means of electronic equipment for the processing (including digital compression), storage and transmission of data, employing wires, radio, optical technologies, or any other electromagnetic means;
‘group’ means a group as defined in Article 2, point (11), of Directive 2013/34/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council(⁵);
‘order’ means each and every order, including each and every quote, irrespective of whether its purpose is initial submission, modification, update or cancellation of an order and irrespective of its type.