Distribution – Page 3 – Global Investment Law Watch

Europe: Agreement on EU ESG Ratings Regulation

Feb 08 2024

By: Hilger von Livonius and Philipp Riedl

On 5 February 2024, the EU Council and the EU Parliament agreed on a provisional text for the ESG Ratings Regulation (the Regulation).

Under the Regulation, in-scope EU providers of ESG ratings will require a licence from, and be supervised by, European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA).

In-scope ESG ratings will provide an opinion on a company’s or a financial instrument’s sustainability profile, by assessing its exposure to sustainability risk and its impact on society and the environment.

Europe: BaFin Clarifies the German Approach to the ELTIF 2.0 Regime

Feb 05 2024

By: Hilger von Livonius and Philipp Riedl

As anticipated in our earlier blog on ELTIF 2.0, Regulation (EU) 2023/606 amending the Regulation on European long-term investment funds (ELTIF Regulation) has been in force since 10 January 2024. There is a lot of hope in the German market that the revised ELTIF regime will finally help this product to achieve a breakthrough.

Europe: UK’s Overseas Funds Regime Moves a Step Closer with Confirmation that Most EEA UCITS Will Be Deemed Equivalent

Feb 02 2024

By: Shane Geraghty, Aoife Maguire, Andrew Massey, Philip Morgan, and Courtney Hunter

The UK’s overseas funds regime has been in development for several years and is finally close to becoming a reality. It will create a more streamlined method by which non-UK funds given “equivalence” status may be marketed to UK retail investors.

Europe: Responsibility of UCITS Management Companies and AIFMs for producing PRIIPs key information documents confirmed

Jan 16 2024

By: Áine Ní Riain and Lucy Deane

Under the EU PRIIPs Regulation “manufacturers” are required to prepare a key information document (KID) where relevant packaged retail investment products (including most funds) are made available to retail investors.

Asia: ICMA’s Code of Conduct for ESG Ratings and Data Products Providers – A Step Towards Consistent Global Standards

Dec 18 2023

By: Carolyn Sng and Sook Young Yeu

The International Capital Market Association (ICMA) has released a voluntary code of conduct for ESG ratings and data products providers (the Code), reflecting recommendations by the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO). The Code is intended to be internationally interoperable and may be used by jurisdictions where no local code or regulation is in place.

Europe: Final SDR rules published by FCA – Time to label your funds (maybe)

Dec 01 2023

The FCA has published its final rules on the UK’s Sustainability Disclosure Requirements (SDR) regime. The key features include:

Europe: New Screening Criteria for the EU Taxonomy’s Environmental Objectives

Nov 27 2023

By: Áine Ní Riain and Gayle Bowen

Following their adoption and publication in draft form by the European Commission last June, two new EU Taxonomy delegated acts were published in the Official Journal on 21 November, and will apply from January 2024. They confirm new and amended technical screening criteria (TSCs) in relation to the environmental objectives in the Taxonomy Regulation. This is a significant build-out in the application of the Taxonomy Regulation given that for an economic activity to be taxonomy-aligned, it must:

Asia: Tokenisation of SFC-authorised Investment Products: What You Need to Know

Nov 13 2023

By: Carolyn Sng and Tan Choo Lye

The Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong (SFC) has on 2 November 2023 issued guidance for the tokenisation of investment products authorised by it for offer to the public in Hong Kong, such as mutual funds, unit trusts and other collective investment schemes. The SFC is adopting a see-through approach, permitting tokenisation of authorised investment products if the underlying product satisfies all applicable authorisation requirements and additional safeguards are in place to address the new risks associated with tokenisation arrangements.

Asia: Hong Kong Backs Industry-led Voluntary Code for ESG Ratings and Data Products Providers

Nov 02 2023

By: Carolyn Sng and Sook Young Yeu

The Securities and Futures Commission in Hong Kong (SFC) has announced its support for the development of a voluntary code of conduct (VCoC) for ESG ratings and data products providers. The proposed VCoC, which will be open for ESG ratings and data products providers to sign up voluntarily, and will align with international best practices as recommended by the International Organization of Securities Commissions.

Asia: Japan Shareholder Reporting Reform

Oct 31 2023

By: Yuki Sako

The Japanese government is currently considering (i) several amendments to the large shareholding reporting requirement, which is generally triggered when the position of a beneficial owner reaches 5% of outstanding shares, and (ii) a new mechanism to provide transparency around beneficial owners even when the 5% threshold is not reached. Notably, the stated purposes of these considerations include promoting engagement between companies and investors by removing obstacles for investors to effectively engage with companies and by making it easier for companies to identify beneficial owners.

Category:Distribution