Despite Brexit agreement, managers still face issues
Leonard Ng
While Brexit is operationally becoming a smaller risk for managers that have now largely secured permissions for their companies to operate in the European Union, they say challenges remain.
Leonard Ng, partner at law firm Sidley Austin LLP in London, said the Dec. 24 agreement of a trade deal between the EU and the U.K. does not mean that U.K.-based firms are getting financial services equivalence. Equivalence permits U.K.-based firms to sell strategies and services to European Union-based clients. In its absence, Mr. Ng warned that any firms selling financial products to EU investors will be breaking the law unless they have secured licenses to operate in their clients member states.
What do private markets funds and their providers have to look forward to next year? for starters, a growth in private debt and a review of alternative investment rules, writes Nicholas Pratt.
Thursday, January 7, 2021
31 December
The Brexit Transitional Period (pursuant to which the UK stayed in the Single Market and European Customs Union came to an end. The FCA updated its Brexit webpages to remind firms of the potential impact this will have.
30 December
In relation to Brexit, the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement was signed, which would apply from 1 January 2021.
28 December
The Prudential Regulation Authority ( PRA ) published a policy statement (PS29/20) on the implementation of the CRD V Directive (EU/2019/878) (
CRD V ).
24 December
In relation to Brexit, the United Kingdom and European Union agreed in principle a Trade and Cooperation Agreement, an Agreement on Nuclear Cooperation and an Agreement on Security Procedures for Exchanging and Protecting Classified Information.
Legal Ease: AIFs’ new pre-marketing rules
In less than one year, new rules to regulate the pre-marketing of alternative investment funds (AIFs) such as private equity, debt, infrastructure and hedge funds are set to come into force. The changes are set to have a particular impact on non-EU fund managers. As of August 2, 2021, these rules will need to be considered before any fund launches. It is imperative that AIFMs familiarise themselves with the changes.
The Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD) does not currently regulate pre-marketing. An AIFM wishing to test investor appetite for a particular investment idea or investment strategy is, therefore, faced with diverging treatment of pre-marketing in different jurisdictions.
Jersey is witnessing a spike in the inflow of private equity fund managers establishing a physical presence on the island. A number of household name fund managers across all asset classes now call Jersey home, with others in advanced stages of planning to follow them into Jersey. What are the principal drivers of this trend?
The drivers can be both economic and regulatory, but redomiciling to Jersey is often also a lifestyle choice for many senior fund management professionals. Jersey s sophisticated funds services offering means that the island can offer operational advantages for fund managers relocating to Jersey. Underscoring this has been a political desire on the island to diversify the economy, which has resulted in the introduction of tax regimes and policies which have attracted high-value industries, such as the fund management industry, to the island.