Europe: Final SDR rules published by FCA – Time to label your funds (maybe)
The FCA has published its final rules on the UK’s Sustainability Disclosure Requirements (SDR) regime. The key features include:
Read MoreAsia: Hong Kong delays implementation of Listing Rules Amendments for Climate Disclosures to 2025
By: Carolyn Sng and Sook Young Yeu
The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (HKEX) had been consulting on proposals to enhance climate-related disclosures under its environmental, social and governance framework, with a previously proposed implementation date of 1 January 2024. The HKEX announced on 3 November 2023 that the implementation date of the Listing Rules amendments will be postponed to 1 January 2025.
Read MoreUnited States: SEC Publishes Its 2024 Exam Priorities—Early
By: Jennifer Klass and Wiley Cole
On 16 October 2023, the Division of Examinations (the Division) of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released its examination priorities for the 2024 fiscal year. In an interesting twist, the SEC released the examination priorities early, changing the timing to correspond to the beginning of its new fiscal year.
Read MoreAsia: S$2.8 Billion Money Laundering Case Threatens Singapore’s Reputation
By: Edward Bennett and Ke Jia Lim
Singapore, known for its fiercely guarded reputation as a global financial hub and growing asset management centre, is currently entangled in one of the most substantial money laundering scandals globally, with a staggering S$2.8 billion (US$2 billion) in seized assets. Ten suspects, originally from China but residing in Singapore, face money laundering charges linked to scams and illegal online gambling.
Read MoreAustralia: ASIC Extends Transitional Relief For Foreign Financial Service Providers
By: Rebecca Mangos and Lisa Lautier
The Australian Investments and Securities Commission (ASIC) announced that it has further extended relief for foreign financial services providers (FFSPs) from the requirement to hold an Australian financial services licence (AFSL) when providing financial services to Australian wholesale clients.
Read MoreUnited States: Tag, You (Maryland Closed-End Funds) Are It!
By Jennifer R. Gonzalez and Nicholas O. Ersoy
In May 2020, the Division of Investment Management Staff of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission published a Statement withdrawing a November 2010 letter issued to Boulder Total Return Fund, relating to the Maryland Control Share Acquisition Act (MCSAA), which had long been an impediment to closed-end funds opting in to state statutes that permit corporations to restrict certain stockholders’ ability to vote “control shares” (shares of a corporation which, when aggregated with all shares of such corporation owned by an acquiring person, exceed certain ownership thresholds). Following the May 2020 Staff Statement, a number of closed-end funds opted in to state control share statutes or adopted by-law provisions with similar impact. Further developments since then include:
Read MoreUnited States: SEC Charges Investment Adviser for Inadequate Policies and Procedures Regarding Valuation of Private Fund Assets
By Todd Gibson, Annabelle North, and Aster Cheng
On 24 May 2023, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced the settlement of charges against Sciens Investment Management, LLC and Sciens Diversified Managers, LLC (collectively, Sciens) related to the valuation of certain private fund portfolio investments (Order). The SEC cited the often-used violations of Section 206(4) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 and Rule 206(4)-7, finding that Sciens failed to implement adequate policies and procedures to properly value certain private fund investments.
Read MoreUnited States: SEC Adopts Amendments to Form PF and Significantly Expands Reporting Requirements
By: Pablo J. Man, Ruth E. Delaney, Matthew F. Phillips, and Gustavo De La Cruz Reynozo
On May 3, 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) approved amendments to Form PF, the confidential reporting form required to be filed by private fund advisers. The amendments expand the scope of Form PF’s disclosure obligations to require large hedge fund advisers to file new “current” reports and all private equity fund advisers to file new quarterly reports upon the occurrence of certain events. Large private equity advisers will also be required to provide new information in their annual updates.
The amended Form PF will require:
- Current Reporting Requirements for Large Hedge Fund Advisers. In addition to their existing quarterly filing obligations, advisers with at least $1.5 billion in assets under management (“AUM”) attributable to hedge funds will be newly required to report certain events—such as extraordinary investment losses, significant margin and default events, and large withdrawal and redemption requests—as soon as practicable, but no later than 72 hours, after they occur.
- Quarterly Reporting for Private Equity Fund Advisers. Within 60 days of the end of each fiscal quarter, each private equity fund adviser will be required to report any completion of an advisor-led secondary transaction or investor elections to remove a fund’s general partner or to terminate a fund’s investment period during the preceding quarter.
- Additional Reporting for Large Private Equity Fund Advisers. Advisers with $2 billion or more of private equity fund AUM will be required to disclose a range of new information in their annual updates to Form PF, including: (a) information about the implementation of general partner and limited partner clawbacks; (b) details about a fund’s investment strategies; (c) additional information about fund-level borrowings; (d) more granular information about the nature of reported events of default; (e) additional identifying information about institutions providing bridge financing; and (f) information about a fund’s greatest country exposures.
The new “current” reporting and quarterly event reporting requirements take effect six months following publication of the final rule in the Federal Register. The other amendments take effect one year following publication of the final rule in the Federal Register.
Europe: Significant Changes Proposed to Market Abuse Regulation in the UK
By Michael Ruck and Aurelija Grubytė
HM Treasury and the FCA have completed their joint review of the criminal market abuse regime, and published a joint statement on 24 March 2023. Their observations are relevant to both the criminal and civil market abuse regimes in the UK. Most notably:
Read MoreEurope: Here’s Your Chance to Improve the UK’s Senior Managers and Certification Regime
The FCA, PRA and UK Government are looking for feedback by 1 June 2023 to guide potential changes to the Senior Managers and Certification Regime (SMCR), the UK’s regime designed to improve individual accountability and conduct standards of (mostly) senior personnel in financial services firms. To this end, the FCA and PRA jointly published a discussion paper on 30 March and HM Treasury published a call for evidence.
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