The Front Page, Asset Management & Investment Funds: Irish Practice Developments

Some Approaching Q1 deadlines for 2015

  • 30 January 2015, ESMA consultation, closing date for submissions in respect of the ESMA consultation on guidelines on asset segregation under the AIFMD (discussed in our December Front Page).
     
  • 31 January 2015, Fitness & Probity – Deadline for filing the Annual PCF Confirmation Return (to 31/12/14) for Fund Service Providers (including AIFMs, UCITS Mancos and internally managed AIFs) and Investment Firms (see below*).
     
  • 17 February 2015, Discussion Paper on Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS) for PRIIPs KID, closing date for submissions (see November Front Page).      
     
  • 19 February 2015, UCITS KIID - Annual update of the key investor information document (KIID) must be filed no later than this date (where required). Any update to the KIID filed with the Central Bank must be translated (as necessary) and filed in any other host jurisdictions where the UCITS is registered to market its shares and uploaded on the UCITS' website.
     
  • 28 February 2015, Fitness & Probity – Deadline for filing the Annual PCF Confirmation Return (to 31/12/14) for UCITS SMICs (see below*). 
     
  • Friday 27 March 2015, deadline for responses to ESMA Discussion Paper on UCITS Share Classes (see below).

This list does not cover ad hoc filings (such as regulatory reports) or filings of annual accounts (and related documents which include annual FDI Return) and semi-annual accounts because these dates will vary to reflect the particular year end.

Updated Central Bank AIFMD Q&A
The Central Bank of Ireland (Central Bank) published the twelfth edition of the AIFMD Q&A on 23 January 2015. New questions ID1085 (delegation), ID1086-ID1087 (transitional arrangements) and ID1088 (disclosure) were added.

The Companies Act 2014

The Companies Bill 2012 was signed by the President of Ireland on 23 December 2014, and has become the Companies Act 2014 (the Act). It is expected that most of the provisions of the Act will come into effect on 1 June 2015. At 1,448 sections and 17 schedules, and covering more than 1,100 pages of text, this was the largest single piece of legislation to come before the Dáil. A link to the Companies Act 2014 appears below:

The new Companies Act condenses the current 17 Companies Acts and related company law provisions into a single comprehensive code of company legislation, and is the culmination of more than 10 years’ work on the part of the Company Law Review Group and the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation. Whilst many of the provisions are merely a restatement of the current law, there are also a number of changes and some new provisions. The design of the new Act focuses on simplification and modernisation with clear and accessible drafting language. Companies remain subject to the Companies Acts 1963-2013 until the Act commences. The citation of the current legislation remains the Companies Acts 1963 to 2013. The Act will replace the Companies Acts 1963 to 2013. It has some impact on companies operating in the Irish investment funds industry.

Fitness & Probity Annual PCF Confirmation Return
The Central Bank has updated its website with the dates for submission of the annual PCF confirmation return, as follows;

The submission deadlines should appear on the ONR for Funds/Fund Service Providers. The earlier deadline of 31 January for Fund Service Providers has been applied on the ONR for some internally managed AIFs as well as AIFMs and UCITS management companies (but not UCITS SMICs). We believe that internally managed AIFs are being categorised as Fund Service Providers for the purpose of this return.