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Fund Managers Are The New Punching Bag
There’s a mismatch in timeline focus of politicians, fund managers and climate responsible proponents… Interlaced cycles of political promises and lawmakers’ actions, scientific facts and generations of activists have been mismatched over the last 50 years. And it’s not looking likely to improve any time soon.
![State of Play – UK’s Sustainability Disclosure Requirements [SDRs]](https://merlys.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/wordpress-blog-for-upload-1200-×-628-px-400x250.jpg)
State of Play – UK’s Sustainability Disclosure Requirements [SDRs]
The UK has done much more than merely be the first EU country to enact mandatory ESG disclosure laws; it has set the scene for mandatory ESG regulation in the Western world whilst driving a London double decker bus toward repairing the world.
Turning The Challenge On Its Head
If you are like others in the funds and asset management sectors, your regulatory projects are lagging behind schedule because your team is already over-stretched and/or you can’t find (hire) the appropriately experienced people.
ESG Technical Workshops for Legal resources
Making sure Funds-businesses can get their ESG products and solutions right first time. Technical knowledge-building workshop training sessions for time-poor legal teams… Bespoke to the company’s needs or a seat at the table of public courses.
ESG Product Workshops for Product and Legal resources
It is not an option to ignore ESG or to Greenwash financial products. Doing so can be financially and reputationally disastrous. ESG product workshops for product and legal resources.
ESG – everything your funds business needs
Most funds-sector businesses are either under-resourced or their legal and product teams are over stretched but it is not an option to ignore ESG or to Greenwash financial products. Doing so can be financially and reputationally disastrous which is why, with an eye on such firms’ purse-strings, Merlys devised this range of ESG-focused solutions.
Diving into the challenges… 3 ways to help your ESG funds products become winners
ESG Funds | Verena Charvet looks at the importance of, and tips for finding out what your target market wants from your investment products.
3 decades of ESG: Joining the dots… to today’s challenges
“If anyone had said to me then that this rather peculiar thing that I was doing with clients – to help them invest in a sustainable way – was going to be very normal and actually legislated for 30 years down the line, I would have been extremely surprised”
February 2022 in the chair with CHARVET | Verena Charvet & Brandon Horwitz talk Assessment of Value (AoVs) for AFMs
The FCA has long been looking to reduce the cost of investments to retail customers and to make sure that there is a link between customer charges and the actual costs to the Authorised Fund Managers (AFM). Assessment of Value (AoV) is part of this long-running initiative.
Product Governance and Consumer Duty 2022
How is this not regulation? The FCA has said that the cost of implementation for firms will be “large”. How can this be reduced and the likelihood of a firm successfully meeting the requirements at an early date – thus avoiding regulatory sanctions and reputational risk – be increased?
Funds Regime Forecast 2022
A look at what lies ahead for Asset Management and Funds sectors in 2022 including…an FCA consultation is intended for the first half of 2022 to consider the potential for widening the distribution of the LTAF to a broader range of retail investors
ESG Forecast 2022 – Asset & Funds Management Sectors |
A dive into what’s ahead for ESG in 2022 with a note to smaller asset managers and funds sector businesses – Be Careful re UK SDR – you might find yourself caught up with this because of customer demand.
Changes in EU Cross-border Distribution of Funds
Changes in EU Cross-border Distribution of Funds July 2021 Overview On 2 August 2021, most of the provisions of the EU Cross-Border Distribution of Funds (CBDF) legislation come into effect. CBDF is looks to harmonise and reduce barriers to the cross-border...
ESG Series-Quick Read | Is the ESG carriage being pulled by two horses travelling at different speeds?
There has been a lot to get to grips with on the ESG disclosure front and sometimes it is difficult to see how the Taxonomy Regulation (TR), Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) and the various regulatory technical standards (RTS) fit together. This Quick Read version aims to show you what to do and links to our longer read briefing document for a deeper dive.
Is the ESG carriage being pulled by horses running at different speeds?
This overview is aimed at in-scope non-EU alternative investment fund managers (AIFMs) that market alternative investment Funds (AIFs) via national private placement regimes under Article 42 of the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive which will include what the FCA calls “UK UCITS”. It explains SFDR and the Taxonomy Regulation; looks into what is happening now and what to do next.
Brexit Series – MoU
In this article we discuss what we anticipate will be in the text of the financial services industry Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) concluded at the end of March but which has yet to be published. We look at: “What does MoU mean to you”?
MiFID II
For Product Managers, Lawyers and Compliance Teams | What you need to know to get your MiFID II product governance controls in order including 6 key requirements
FinTech | Have you read the Kalifa report?
Have you Read the Kalifa Report? Today FinTech is at the heart of much of what we do. There is no one single piece of FinTech regulation but a tapestry that does require careful navigation. Read our briefing document.
SFDR is here. What now?
SFDR into play from 10th March 2021. Many UK firms think it’s not for them. We identify where it may well be applicable and show reasons why.
Are you sure SFDR doesn’t apply to your organisation?
Are you sure SFDR doesn't apply to you? Update note: Since this article was published in February, we published another on 10th March - the day SFDR came into play - you may wish to read it here: SFDR is here - Now What? By contrast, this article said the...
Post-Brexit approach to regulating UK financial services at Q1 2021
[The Post-Brexit approach to regulating financial services in the UK as at Q1 2021 Following on from our "Key Implications” briefing note on the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement (24 December 2020)[5] (the Agreement) this briefing note takes a more...
Key Implications 2020 UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement
The Key implications of the EU/UK Trade Agreement for Asset Management and Fund Management sectors
Breaking… It’s Good News Month for Merlys
There’s growth and good news on the 2021 horizon for Merlys as they announce a new association with Merali Beedle and welcome new team member Andre Wint into the practice.
Report | Impact of Covid19 on the Fund Management Industry
A report on the effect of Covid on the Fund Management and Asset Management sectors. It looks at remote working; how the enforced changes have been managed; at Staff morale, well-being and Mental health and more.
How To Get Value For Money When Buying Legal Services
5 tips for getting value for money when buying legal services. 1. Get Clear About What You Want 2. Consider Competitive Quotes 3. Be Clear About Fees 4. Get Regular Status Quo Updates 5. Pay Lawyers Fees Promptly
An Occasional Brexit Update by Merlys – 16/11/20
An Occasional BREXIT Overview from Merlys - 16 November 2020 Where has the UK got to with “equivalence”? What does “equivalence” mean? There are equivalence provisions in many pieces of EU legislation, some of which have been adopted into UK legislation...
4th Quarter Brexit Roadmap & Commentary (September–December 2020)
4th Quarter BREXIT Roadmap & Commentary (Sept-Dec 2020) From the first mention of Brexit, Merlys has closely followed proceedings as it relates to the Funds and Asset Management sectors. In producing this document and Roadmap, Merlys aims to provide a...
What is AIFMD 2?
What is AIFMD 2? AIFMD is the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive 2. The original (or first) AIFMD was implemented in 2013 and the European Commission indicated the need for a supplementary AIFM Directive (AIFMD 2) which was concluded 6 years later. A...
Summer Update 2020
We hope that all our clients, friends and their colleagues and families remain safe and well. This is a short bulletin to up-date you on recent developments while you may be taking a well-deserved break but need to catch up on those developments. The following are in...
What Changes Have Happened to ESG in Europe?
ESG is a fast-evolving area of the law and it is increasingly influencing the funds management industry. It is very much on our radar at Merlys and we are actively keeping abreast of developments. We will be posting regular updates to add our take on this evolving...
It is essential to have effective internal controls in your business…….
Every business manager knows that it is impossible to know everything that their staff are up to and they are reliant on their staff reporting upwards accurately so that they can feel confident that their business is performing at its best. But things go wrong from...
Case Study: Obtaining FCA authorisation / licences
A client consulted us on their application for investment firm registration with the FCA. Initially we were asked to provide a comprehensive summary of the overall regulatory requirements for the specific regulated business. We then helped to draft the application and to collate the documentation the clients needed to support the application.
Case Study: Setting up a UK regulated fund
A non-EEA client sought our advice on establishing a UK regulated fund. The client has considerable expertise as a regulated wealth advisor and fund manager in their home jurisdiction. The client saw opportunities in the UK but was uncertain where to set up a fund. ...
Knowledge Is Power – Why Not Communicating Can be Dangerous
We have all worked with people who, for a variety of reasons, believe that they can empire build and carry influence over others if they gather but do not disseminate information. This type of behaviour can start out as seemingly getting the edge over colleagues,...
Case Study: Understanding the interaction between PRIPPs and MiFID II
We were instructed by an EMEA fund provider (manufacturer) which needed to understand the interaction between PRIPPs and MiFID II and to identify any synergies between them. We worked with the client’s in-house legal and product development teams to understand the...
Case Study: MiFID II Compliance
The UK Branch of a non-EEA bank wanted to understand the impact of MiFID II on its business in the EEA. We began with a plain language analysis of the changes and undertook a ‘gap’ analysis of the bank’s then current position. We gave tailored advice on the changes required to comply with MiFID II.
