Follow Us

Follow us on Twitter  Follow us on LinkedIn
 

16 December 2013

FN: Marketing levy threat for fund managers


Default: Change to:


Some national regulators are planning to levy fees on alternative investment fund managers who market funds in their countries, in a move that has triggered angry protests from trade bodies.


Funds can now get a “passport” under the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive, which allows them to be marketed across Europe. Fund managers had been led to believe that once they had this passport, they could operate across Europe as a single market. However, regulators in Germany, France, Austria and Latvia are planning to charge additional fees to managers seeking to market funds in those countries.

The Latvian regulator, the Financial and Capital Market Commission, would charge alternative investment fund managers €1,209 per year to be supervised while marketing their funds, according to a FCMC spokeswoman. The Austrian Financial Market Authority is planning to charge between €150 and €11,560 depending on what services the funds required, according to an FMA spokesman. Representatives from the Austrian, Latvian and French regulators said the fees were required to cover the cost of supervision.

George Anson, managing director of HarbourVest Partners and chairman of the European Private Equity and Venture Capital Association, said that it was a “disgrace and a clear contravention of the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive”. The association has written to the European Commission to draw attention to the issue, while the Alternative Investment Management Association is also said to be drafting a letter.

Full article (FN subscription required)



© Financial News


< Next Previous >
Key
 Hover over the blue highlighted text to view the acronym meaning
Hover over these icons for more information



Add new comment