Revision of the AIFM and UCITS Directives – European Commission proposal

On 25 November 2021, the European Commission published a proposal to amend the AIFM Directive on alternative investment funds. Why?

This amendment was anticipated as part of normal revisions of a text.

It is based in particular on the analysis of the industry responses in January 2021 to the European Commission consultation on the functioning of this directive.

The results indicated that the AIFMD had achieved its core objectives: Protecting investors and establishing a harmonised European framework.

Even so, the Commission felt that targeted improvements needed to be made.

In my view, the main changes that could have an impact on management companies are:

• The clarification of the rules on delegation,

• The harmonisation of liquidity management tools, such as the Gates,

• And the improvement of data collected through regulatory reporting.

We’re discussing the AIFM directive, but will the other fund directive, the UCITS directive, also be impacted?

For the sake of consistency, the Commission also plans to amend the UCITS Directive, mainly on the same issues I just mentioned.

What comes next? When will the transposition into local law take place?

The Commission proposal will now pass to the European Parliament and the Council.

Once the European authorities have adopted the proposal, EU Member States will have 24 monthsto transpose it into local law.

We can therefore expect transposition in 2024 at best, which should give the industry time to adapt to the changes in these two directives.

Marie-Claire de Saint-Exupéry
Senior Advisor Public Affairs, SGSS