Introduction
Welcome to the Q4 2024 edition of the Global Registration Services Market Update, brought to you by the Maples Group. This briefing covers the period from October to December 2024 and provides a comprehensive overview of the latest regulatory changes and fee adjustments affecting the crossborder distribution of investment funds.
Key updates from multiple jurisdictions including across Europe, Middle East and Asia are highlighted, with important topics flagged for your attention.
Our aim is to keep you informed of the evolving regulatory landscape to ensure your compliance and strategic planning are well-supported. We trust you will find this update insightful and beneficial for your ongoing operations.
How the Maples Group Can Help
The Maples Group's Global Registration Services is integrated within our Funds & Investment Management Group and provides cross-border fund registration services in all key distribution markets. Our core services provide support throughout the distribution chain to include market intelligence, market entry (through private placement or public offering) and maintenance of ongoing reporting and filing obligations.
Further Information
Should you require any further information or assistance in relation to marketing your fund products on a cross-border basis, please visit our dedicated webpage or contact the following or any member of the Maples Group GRS team
Important updates occurring outside of this quarterly market update
United Kingdom
Publication of a User Guide for the Submission of Material Change Notifications or the Termination or Cessation of UK Marketing under OFR
On 16 January 2025, the FCA added to their Overseas Funds Regime ("OFR") webpage a user guide to help fund operators with notifying the FCA of certain material changes to a recognised Collective Investment Scheme/sub-fund(s) ("CIS") or of the termination or cessation of UK marketing of a recognised CIS.
The user guide explains how to submit material change notifications or termination or cessation of UK marketing notifications via the FCA's Connect system. It also clarifies which changes/events are to be notified via the FCA's Connect system and which ones are to be notified via e-mail. Other than that, it includes a reminder that any updated scheme documentation is to be supplied to the FCA.
Croatia
Updated Supervisory Fees for the Cross-Border Marketing of Foreign Funds
On 19 December 2024, the Croatian Financial Services Supervisory Agency ("Hanfa") issued the Ordinance on the calculation, level and charging of fees paid to the Hanfa for the year 2025 (the "Ordinance"). This Ordinance entered into force on 1 January 2025.
The Ordinance reduces the annual supervisory fee for the cross-border marketing of UCITS and AIFs notified in Croatia in accordance with Article 93 of the UCITS Directive or Article 32 of the AIFMD as follows:
| Annual fee | Old Fee | New Fee |
| UCITS | EUR 1,850 (for umbrella funds, an additional fee of 390 must be paid for the second and any subsequent subfund) | EUR 1,500 (for umbrella funds, an additional fee of 390 must be paid for the second and any subsequent subfund) |
| AIFs | EUR 1,850 (for umbrella funds, an additional fee of 390 must be paid for the second and any subsequent subfund) | EUR 1,500 (for umbrella funds, an additional fee of 390 must be paid for the second and any subsequent subfund) |
These fees apply to every fund notified for cross-border marketing in Croatia, regardless of whether they have Croatian investors. For funds already notified for marketing, the new fees will be applicable from 1 January 2025. For funds notified after 31 December 2024, the fees will be charged from the date the Hanfa receives the notification letter. The Hanfa will issue an invoice with payment instructions to the fund manager.
The Hanfa does not charge a fee for processing a de-notification of the marketing arrangements of an UCITS or AIF in Croatia in accordance with Article 93a of the UCITS Directive or Article 32a of the AIFMD and will not apply the new annual supervisory fees to funds for which it receives a denotification letter by 31 January 2025.
Finland
Updated Supervisory Fees for the Cross-Border Marketing of Foreign Funds
On 19 December 2024, the Financial Authority of Finland ("FIN-FSA") released a new processing fee schedule that will take effect on 1 January 2025.
The below table shows the new fees the FIN-FSA charges for processing notifications for the crossborder marketing of funds in Finland in comparison with the old ones.
| Application Fee | Old Fee | New Fee |
| Marketing in Finland of shares in a UCITS or collective investment undertaking managed by an EEA management company | EUR 1,820 | EUR 0 |
| Cross-border marketing of an AIF managed by an entity authorised in the EEA to non-professional investors or cross-border marketing to Finland of an AIF registered in the EEA country | EUR 1,300 | EUR 1,320 |
| Marketing of a third-country fund in Finland | EUR 3,000 | EUR 3,050 |
France
Revision of AMF Policies to Comply with ESMA Guidelines on Funds' Names Using ESG or Sustainability-Related Terms
On 16 December 2024, the Autorité des Marchés Financiers ("AMF") decided to align its policies with the ESMA Guidelines on funds' names using ESG or sustainability-related terms (the "Guidelines"), resulting in the amendment of the AMF Position-Recommendation DOC-2020-03.
The AMF Position-Recommendation DOC-2020-03 was published in March 2020 with the aim of curbing greenwashing by establishing minimum standards and allowing collective investment undertakings marketed to retail clients in France to communicate on the consideration of non-financial criteria in their name, key information document and marketing materials.
With the amendments of the AMF Position-Recommendation DOC-2020-03, the previous criteria for fund names have been replaced with those set out in the Guidelines and have been expanded to include all collective investment undertakings, even those reserved for professional clients, which must adhere to the Guidelines.
The changes also aim to clarify how these new requirements for fund names interact with existing rules, particularly concerning the marketing materials of French and foreign funds marketed in France to retail investors. To centrally communicate the consideration of non-financial criteria in their marketing materials, these funds must continue to adhere to the existing criteria of Position-Recommendation DOC-2020-03. If a fund marketed to retail investors wishes to include ESG or sustainability terms in its name and centrally communicate non-financial criteria in its marketing materials, it must comply with both the ESMA guidelines and the criteria of Position-Recommendation DOC-2020-03.
The amendments to Position-Recommendation DOC-2020-03 are effective with immediate effect.
Guernsey
Updated Supervisory Fees for the Cross-Border Marketing of Foreign Funds
On 5 December 2024, the Guernsey Financial Services Commission ("GFSC") issued the Statutory Instrument 2024 No. 101 entitled "The Financial Services Commission (Fees and Administrative Penalties) Regulations, 2024", which lays down, with effect from 1 January 2025, the fees payable for the promotion of a foreign fund in Guernsey by giving prior notification of the promotion to the GFSC by submission of a Form EX.
As a result, the Form EX notification application fee has been raised as follows:
| Application Fee | Old Fee | New Fee |
| Form EX notification | GBP 1,395 | GBP 1,470 |
Jersey
Updated Supervisory Fees for the Cross-Border Marketing of Foreign Funds
The Jersey Financial Services Commission ("JSFC") published a new CoBO Fees Notice, which sets out the fees that are effective for the period from 1 January 2025 until 31 December 2025.
A fee of GBP 686 is now payable in respect of an application by a foreign fund to the JSFC for a consent under the Control of Borrowing Order 1958 ("COBO"), against GBP 673 previously.
| Application Fee | Old Fee | New Fee |
| Foreign Fund | GBP 673 | GBP 686 |
Luxembourg
Integration of ESMA's Guidelines on Funds' Names Using ESG or SustainabilityRelated Terms into the CSSF's Administrative Practices and Regulatory Approach
Making reference to our last Global Registration Services Market Update Q3 2024, on 21 October 2024, the CSSF published a communication announcing the publication of the Circular CSSF 24/863 (the "Circular"), thereby implementing the ESMA Guidelines on funds' names using ESG or sustainability-related terms (the "Guidelines") into Luxembourg's regulatory framework.
In its communication, the CSSF also informed marketed participants of its expectations regarding the application of the Guid
elines and the putting into place of a priority processing procedure ("PPP") for existing UCITS and AIFs to update their issuing document/prospectus. The PPP restricts updates to such documentation solely to changes necessitated by the implementation of the Guidelines. As such, these updates must be confined to either a name alteration of at least one sub-fund or minor modifications to the fund's/sub-fund's ESG engagement/SFDR precontractual disclosure. The conditions and modalities for taking advantage of the PPP are further detailed in the fund naming confirmation letter that must accompany the submission of the fund issuing document/prospectus.
Publication of New UCI Forms for Notifying Errors and Instances of NonCompliance under Circular CSSF 24/856
Ahead of the entry into force on 1 January 2025 of the Circular CSSF 24/856, which repeals Circular CSSF 02/77, the CSSF published new forms on 17 December 2024. These new UCI forms are for reporting errors in the calculation of the NAV of a UCI (i.e. UCITS, a UCI Part II, a SIF, a SICAR, an MMF, an ELTIF, an EuVECA and an EuSEF), instances of non-compliance with the investment rules applicable to UCIs and notifying errors at UCI level as specified in this new circular.
In order to account for the new category of errors introduced by Circular CSSF 24/856, the CSSF updated the notification forms provided for under Circular CSSF 02/77 while introducing at the same time a secure transmission channel for these forms via the eDesk platform or via automated submission using the API (S3 protocol).
Starting from 1 January 2025, any errors or instances of non-compliance must be reported through either the eDesk platform or the S3 protocol. In case of authorisation of the UCI for distribution in countries other than Luxembourg, this must be indicated in the notification form. A user guide detailing the notification procedure for errors and instances of non-compliance has been made available by the CSSF on its website.
Malta
Updated Supervisory Fees for the Cross-Border Marketing of Foreign Funds
On 24 December 2024, the Legal Notice L.N. 370/2024 entitled "Investment Services Act (Fees) Regulations, 2024" was published in the Government Gazette of Malta. It increased the annual supervisory fee charged to European AIFMs marketing units or shares of an European AIF that it manages to professional investors in Malta from EUR 3,000 to EUR 4,000. In case of an umbrella fund, the additional fee with respect to every sub-fund of such European AIF, which was set at EUR 500, remains unchanged. This new amount will be applicable from 1 January 2025.
| Annual Fee | Old Fee | New Fee |
| European AIFMs marketing EU AIFs | Fund: EUR 3,000 Sub-Fund: EUR 500 |
Fund: EUR 4,000 Sub-Fund: EUR 500 |
Sweden
Updated Supervisory Fees for the Cross-Border Marketing of Foreign Funds
The Finansinspektionen ("FI") has updated the fees it invoices for processing the following AIF marketing notifications:
| Application Fee | New Fee |
| EEA manager marketing an EEA AIF to professional investors | SEK 25,500 |
| Non-EEA Manager marketing an AIF to professional investors | SEK 18,000 |
Gulf Cooperation Council
Endorsement of a Fund Passporting Regulatory Framework
On 20 November 2024, the United Arab Emirates' Securities and Commodities Authority ("SCA") announced that, in a significant move to bolster integration among Gulf financial markets, the financial market authorities within the Gulf Cooperation Council ("GCC") have endorsed a regulatory framework for fund passporting across the region. This framework, along with passporting regulations for member states (i.e. Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates), was approved during the 29th meeting of the GCC Committee of Heads of Financial Market Authorities. The regulations are slated to come into effect in early 2025 for the GCC states that have completed the necessary legislative procedures.
Investment funds are the first financial products to be governed under a unified framework at the GCC level. The new regulations focus on key aspects related to the registration and promotion of investment funds throughout the GCC states. They outline the procedures for fund registration, the criteria that funds must meet in order to qualify as well as the duties of fund managers and promoters. Additionally, these regulations encompass a broad array of procedures aimed at safeguarding the rights of unit holders. They empower GCC regulators to supervise these funds and to de-register funds that do not comply with the regulations or meet the established criteria, thereby ensuring adherence to financial and legislative standards.
To view the full article click here
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
