The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) has issued a reminder to issuers and persons responsible for drawing up prospectuses that the European Securities and Markets Authority Guidelines on Alternative Performance Measures (ESMA/2015/1415) came into force on 3 July 2016. 

According to the guidelines, an alternative performance measure, or APM, is a financial measure of historical or future financial performance, financial position, or cash flows other than a financial measure defined or specified in the applicable financial reporting framework.

APMs are usually derived from the financial statements prepared in accordance with the applicable financial reporting framework, generally by combining or disaggregating the figures presented in the financial statements. Examples include operating earnings, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation, net debt or similar terms denoting adjustments to line items of statements of comprehensive income, statements of financial position or statements of cash flow.

The ESMA guidelines set out the principles to be followed when presenting APMs in regulated information or prospectuses, in order to ensure consistency and promote the usefulness and transparency of APMs. CySEC has adopted the ESMA guidelines and expects issuers and those responsible for drawing up prospectuses to comply with them, and will monitor compliance with the guidelines.

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