The European Commission recently adopted amendments to the Packaged Retail and Insurance-based Investment Products (PRIIPs) Regulation and the Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities (UCITS) Directive. However, in contrast to earlier plans, the adoption of the revised Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS) amending Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/653 has been postponed.
Distribution & Client Disclosures
EFAMA monitors issues surrounding fund distribution and disclosures to investors. These include investor protection and disclosure issues arising from the evolving PRIIPs and MiFID frameworks, the shift towards digital distribution tools, and the continued integration of ESG considerations into fund products.
Joint industry response to the EC Better Regulation consultation on the UCITS ‘quick fixes'
Industry calls for reasonable implementation timeline for PRIIPs changes
EFAMA and several other financial industry associations, raised concerns in response to a consultation conducted by the European Commission on planned changes to the Packaged Retail and Insurance-based Investment Products (PRIIPs) framework.
The unexpected delay to the adoption of the revised PRIIPs RTS cuts the implementation period for the industry by more than two months. This leaves PRIIPs manufacturers and distributors with a too short period instead of the original timeframe of 12 months to implement the new rules.
EU retail investments: comprehensive strategy to increase retail investor participation required
EFAMA wholeheartedly supports a retail investment strategy that gives EU citizens the necessary tools and the confidence to put their savings to work by investing in capital markets.
Joint Industry letter on the importance of advice and preserving the commission-based model
EFAMA, together with EBF, Insurance Europe, EACB, EAPB, ESBG and EUSIPA, issued a public letter addressed to Vice-President Dombrovskis, Commissioners McGuinness and Director-General Berrigan, remarking the importance of advice for European retail investors and the need to maintain the coexistence of fee-based and commission-based advice.
ESMA’s Consultation paper on the review of the guidelines on MiFID II product governance requirements
EFAMA wholeheartedly supports ESMA’s objective of ensuring a consistent and harmonised application of the MiFID II product governance requirements. In our response to their consultation on the topic, we raised the following points:
EU Commission targeted consultation on open finance framework and Data sharing in the financial sector
EFAMA appreciates the opportunity to comment on the European Commission's Targeted consultation on open finance framework and data sharing in the financial sector.
Investment Funds Distributor Due Diligence Questionnaire
Funds face unique challenges in performing intermediary oversight, and especially so because of MiFID II requirements, changing regulatory landscapes, and the absence of an industry agreed-upon standard between funds and their distribution channels. To help address these challenges, a dedicated working group developed a uniform due diligence questionnaire (DDQ) that will serve as the standard for investment funds (UCITS and AIFs) in performing onboarding and ongoing oversight of distribution channels.