Europeans largely ignoring Ucits IV directive
From Regulation Sep 30 2011 BY: Gary Corcoran
, Group Editor
, Portfolio Adviser and International Adviser
Two-thirds of the 22 European Economic Area countries are still not fully compliant with the Ucits IV directive that was introduced in July this year, according to research from PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Thierry Blondeau, Ucits IV European leader at PwC, said: “This prevents large players from using the full range of possibilities offered by Ucits IV, such as cross-border fund mergers, management company passport and master feeder.”
Despite the implementation date of earlier this summer, out of 22 of the EEA countries, the majority (60%) have not carried out their responsibilities under the Ucits IV directive that makes true cross-border business nigh on impossible for these countries to do.
Eleven of the 22 have not implemented Ucits IV while seven have not issued any marketing guidelines as required by the directive.
Mark Evans is head of global fund distribution services at PwC Luxembourg. He suggests that part of the reason for the lack of take-up is the complexities of the notification process, ongoing differences in local marketing rules and a lack of coordination between regulators.
The UK, Germany, Luxembourg, Ireland, France and Malta have fully embraced Ucits IV while it is the likes of Greece, Italy, Spain, Portugal that are still behind the curve.