Exploring the legal and regulatory issues affecting the worldwide asset management community.
One of the UK FCA’s favoured ways of regulating is through “Dear CEO” letters, which seek to place a direct onus on CEOs to address FCA priorities. On 3 February 2023, CEOs of UK asset management firms were the recipients of one such letter. Much of the content is not surprising (e.g. the emphasis on consumer outcomes) but we highlight here some particularly notable points:
Read MoreBy: Hayley Trahan-Liptak and Anna E. L’Hommedieu
On February 7, 2023, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Division of Examinations (the Division) announced its 2023 examination priorities.[1] The timing of the announcement, over a month earlier than the Division’s examination priority announcements in the prior two years, suggests a return to normal following pandemic-era examinations.
Read MoreBy Jim Bulling, Anabelle Weinberg and Lok Choy
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) has released its policy and supervision priorities for 2023 with the aim to increase the financial soundness of the banking, insurance and superannuation industry.
Read MoreBy Andrew Massey and Robert Lloyd
With effect from 31 July 2023*, a new Consumer Duty will require firms conducting regulated activities in the UK to act to deliver good outcomes for retail customers. The FCA has conducted a review of the implementation plans of a number of larger firms, and published its findings on 25 January 2023.
Although pertaining to larger firms, the findings – particularly the examples of good practice and areas for improvement – are intended to be “useful” for all firms preparing for the Duty. The underlying concern identified by the FCA is the risk that firms may not be ready in time, or may struggle to embed the Duty effectively throughout their business.
Read MoreBy Maya Ffrench-Adam and Andrew Massey
1 January 2023 marked the latest regulatory milestone in the UK’s phased implementation of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) recommendations.
The TCFD – first set up in 2015 by the Financial Stability Board – is an international body that has issued recommendations, targeted at multiple sectors, for disclosing climate-related financial information.
Read MoreBy Jim Bulling and Anabelle Weinberg
Earlier this week, the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) announced that they will be cracking down on misleading testimonials and endorsements by social media influencers. The ACCC is reviewing a range of social media platforms including Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, YouTube and Facebook, and Twitch.
Read MoreBy Jim Bulling and Anabelle Weinberg
Australian Minister for Financial Services, Stephen Jones, has urged superannuation trustees to ‘step up to the mark’ on member engagement and satisfaction following a recent report from the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).
Read MoreBy: C. Todd Gibson, Amjad Hussain, and Zaid Abu-Shattal
The Securities and Commodities Authority (“SCA”), the federal financial regulatory agency in the United Arab Emirates (“UAE”) issued on 16 January 2023 a suite of new decisions and regulations, which introduced sweeping changes to the public distribution of foreign funds in the UAE.
Pursuant to SCA Chairman of the Board of Directors Decision No. 4/RM of 2023 Concerning the Procedures of Adjustment of Situation to Promote Units of Foreign Funds in the UAE (“Foreign Funds Regulations”), which came into effect on 17 January 2023, promotion of foreign funds in the UAE is now limited to private distribution to professional investors and/or market counterparties, as defined in the SCA Rulebook. As of today, the updated regulations are only available in Arabic.
Amongst other obligations set out in the Foreign Funds Regulations, promoters of foreign funds in the UAE must amend their arrangements with managers of foreign funds to comply with the provisions of the Foreign Funds Regulations.
The Foreign Funds Regulations state that promoters may continue performing their obligations pursuant to contracts that are still in force for a period not exceeding six months from 1 January 2023 or until the expiration of such contracts (whichever comes first), provided that the registration of the concerned foreign funds are renewed within the transitional period and payment of the prescribed fees are made to the SCA.
The SCA seems to want to encourage global asset managers to set up an onshore presence and establish onshore domestic public or private funds to target investors in the UAE in accordance with the new requirements and processes that were also issued on 16 January 2023 under the SCA Chairman of the Board of Directors Decision No. 1/RM of 2023 on the Regulation of Investment Funds. The SCA also issued decisions with respect to regulations governing the registration of securities for listing purposes, amending certain provisions of the SCA Rulebook, clearing activities in local commodity markets, and SCA services fees.
By Jim Bulling and Anabelle Weinberg
ASIC has brought in the New Year with a focus on green-washing, issuing infringement notices against two different companies, one a superannuation fund trustee and the second being an energy company. The corporations have paid $13,320 and $39,960 respectively in compliance with the infringement notices, noting that payment of such infringement notices is not an admission of guilty or liability.
Read MoreBy: Eden L. Rohrer and Jessica D. Cohn
On December 23, 2022, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 2617, the “Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023,” following Senate passage on December 22. President Biden is expected to sign the legislation before December 30. Among the routine federal funding provisions, the bill includes a holiday surprise “policy rider” on qualifying mergers and acquisitions brokers (“M&A brokers”) in Division AA, Title V, Small Business Mergers, Acquisitions, Sales and Brokerage Simplification (“Title V”), effective 90 days after enactment. (H.R. 2617, 117th Cong. Div. AA, Title V, § 501 (2022)).
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