Asset Management & Investment Funds  - News Update

Managers of alternative investment funds and UCITS-funds may establish branches and carry out activities on a cross border basis into other EU/EEA states. Norwegian managers must notify the Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway (Finanstilsynet) in order to carry out activities on a cross-border basis in the EU/EEA area. Finanstilsynet shall, within a month of receipt of such notification forward the notification to the supervisory authority in the host state and notify the manager of this. The manager may carry out cross-border activities upon receipt of this notification. Norwegian managers wishing to establish a branch in another EU/EEA state must follow a similar procedure, but in this situation Finanstilsynet is required to forward the branch notification to the supervisory authority in the host state within two months of receipt.
 
The requirements to the contents of a branch notification are more comprehensive than a cross-border activity notification, but it is fair to say that both notifications are fairly simple. Some supervisory authorities in the EU/EEA have however introduced additional information requirements for such notifications, beyond what follows from the AIFMD and the UCITS directive, and some have required the completion of designated forms. On 25 June 2024, new EU rules will come into force, supplementing the AIFMD and the UCITS directive, which will specify and complement the current information requirements in connection with these notifications. For cross-border activities the new rules mainly relate to information securing correct identification of the manager. For branch establishments, the new rules mainly relate to information about the organization of the branch, as well as identification and contact details for the persons responsible for the branch. If the branch outsources parts of its operations, the control mechanisms in place for this shall also be described. The new rules also include a specification to the effect that the supervisory authority shall be informed of any changes to previous notified information.
 
The timing of a formal transposition into Norwegian law is unclear, but Norwegian managers will regardless of this need to comply with the new rules once they are in force in the EU in order to avoid additional requests and hold-ups in connection with branch and/or cross border activities notifications.