Soft Commissions/Payments for Research – Global Investment Law Watch

Europe: Proposed UK and EU Rules on More Research Cost Re-Bundling Move Closer

Jan 15 2025

By: Phillip Morgan, Andrew Massey, and Raghu Meena

In the United Kingdom, the FCA has proposed to give fund managers (including UCITS Mancos and full-scope UK AIFMs) an option to use fund assets to pay jointly for execution and research (so-called ‘bundled’ payments). The existing options of paying for research from manager funds or operating a customer-financed research payment account would remain. Final rules are expected in the first half of 2025. This follows the introduction on 1 August 2024 of a similar option for separate account managers as discussed here.

Europe: Research Cost Re-Bundling – Is the UK Going Back to the Future?

Apr 23 2024

By: Andrew Massey, Philip Morgan, and Omega Modi

The UK’s FCA has published consultation paper 24/7: Payment optionality for investment research. It proposes a new, more flexible, way to charge third-party investment research to clients.

The new payment option would sit alongside the two existing options under which research costs are either paid by firms from their own resources or charged to clients through a research payment account. The latter approach has not been popular because of its operational complexities, so research has been an out-of-pocket expense for many UK asset managers.

SEC Publishes Its 2024 Exam Priorities—Early

Oct 23 2023

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.

Europe: FCA Sets Ambitious Goal to Improve Asset Management Regulation in the UK

Feb 24 2023

By Robert Lloyd, Maya Ffrench-Adam and Philip Morgan

On 20 February 2023, the FCA published a discussion paper (DP23/2) on improving the UK asset management regime. Key themes include:

Alignment with Relevant International Standards

The FCA does not want to create unnecessary complexity for firms operating in multiple jurisdictions. It aims to develop the regime to interact effectively with international requirements, while promoting the international competitiveness of the UK economy.

Tag:Soft Commissions/Payments for Research