WIREDGOV

EU institutions are taking steps in giving a simpler and quicker access of companies to funding sources across Europe.

The Romanian presidency of the Council and the European Parliament yesterday reached a preliminary agreement on a package of measures aimed at removing existing barriers to the cross-border distribution of investment funds. The deal will now be submitted for endorsement by EU ambassadors.

The agreement enhances the current regulatory framework applying to investment funds, which is based mainly on the UCITS and AIFM directives, complemented by four fund-specific frameworks (European venture capital funds, European social entrepreneurship funds, European long-term investment funds and money market funds). Rules for EU investment funds allow fund managers to distribute and, with some exceptions, to manage their funds across the EU, while ensuring a high level of investor protection.

While EU investment funds have seen rapid growth in recent years, the EU investment fund market is still predominantly organised as a national market: 70 % of all assets under management are held by investment funds registered for sale only in their domestic market. Only 37 % of UCITS and about 3 % of AIFs are registered for sale in more than three Member States.

The new rules agreed yesterday will facilitate the cross-border distribution of investment funds by eliminating current regulatory barriers and making cross-border distribution less costly.

Next steps

The text will now be submitted to EU ambassadors for endorsement. It will then undergo a legal linguistic revision. Parliament and Council will be called on to adopt the proposed regulation and directive at first reading.

• Council page on the Capital Markets Union
• Commission page on legislative proposals on facilitating cross-border distribution of investment funds

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Maria Tomasik

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