The paper addresses the scientific and professional perspectives on emerging financial markets' essence and determining features. Characteristic of emerging financial markets requires clarification that determines the research purpose. Within research framework, we suggest to consider emerging market in the broader sense as an emerging financial system. This approach corresponds with the financial development assessment and monitoring methodology. Applying this approach, it is relevant to broadly view the determining features of emerging financial markets including institutional and instrumental characteristics. We find it advisable to supplement the characteristics of emerging financial markets by the following institutional and instrumental features correspondingly: medium level of information transparency, increased country risk, moderate level of operational efficiency; the presence of stock markets, including those with high liquidity instruments; domestic and/or foreign market of state and corporate debt instruments; free and well-developed forex market of major currencies, derivatives market with liquid contracts for currencies and equities. The reported study was funded by RFBR according to the research project No 18-010-00085.