On Thursday, September 1, MFA submitted a comment letter to the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority in response to the FCA’s consultation paper proposing additional reporting requirements under the AIFMD. In the letter we expressed our view that EU national competent authorities imposing requirements beyond those set out in the AIFMD creates disincentives for non-EU AIFMs to market their AIFs to EU investors by imposing additional costs and creating legal uncertainty, particularly for AIFMs marketing their AIFs into multiple jurisdictions. While the Directive permits regulators to collect information beyond what is specifically required, when necessary for the effective monitoring of systemic risk, to avoid adverse consequences we suggested the FCA should exercise this discretion sparingly and in a proportionate manner. In addition, we encouraged the FCA to: (1) give further consideration to the costs of the proposed requirements before finalizing its proposal; (2) consider issues with respect to harmonization of reporting requirements; (3) ensure robust protection of confidential data; and (4) address concerns regarding the impact of new rules on non-EU AIFMs that choose to cease marketing to UK investors under the AIFMD.
