Clifford Chance
AIFM Directive and Private Equity
10 January 2011
On 11 November 2010, the European Parliament plenary approved the final text of the Directive on Alternative Investment Fund Managers (AIFMD). The AIFMD lays down the rules for the authorisation, ongoing operation and transparency of managers (each an AIFM) of alternative investment funds and applies to any AIFM which:
- has its registered office in the EU;
- manages any AIF which is authorised or registered in, or has its registered office or head office in the EU; or
- markets any AIF in the EU.
One of the key points is that the AIFMD will apply to the marketing of any fund to investors in the European Union, even if the fund or the AIFM has no connection with the European Union.
In this briefing, we consider the AIFMD primarily from the perspective of a private equity house (PEH), focusing on:
- the key issues which may affect the deal teams at a PEH (covering asset stripping, remuneration policies, annual reporting and employee notification); and
- the regulatory issues which may affect the operations of a PEH (covering the scope of application of the AIFMD, authorisation, more robust risk management, passports, capital requirements and depositaries).
