Offshore Investment Mag

* Simpler Notification







The MFSA is currently seeking feedback from the financial services industry with regards to proposed amendments to the Companies Act (Investment Companies with Variable Share Capital) Regulations. The amendments are aimed at lightening reporting obligations on investors in SICAVs. The proposal is to remove the obligation to notify the Registrar of Companies about the pledge of securities issued by a SICAV  and about the termination of the pledge currently imposed by the Companies Act. These requirements are seen as inconsistentwith the fact that the Registrar does not hold information on the holders of shares in a SICAV; it is also seen to be a cumbersome procedure, giving rise to unnecessary difficulties, particularly when the pledging of shares is made among institutional investors. In lieu of the notification to the Registrar, a provision will be introduced whereby any third party who may have an interest in a particular security may request the SICAV in writing to provide himwith information as to whether a pledge of securities has been recorded in the register of the holders of the respective securities. The draft amendments also propose thatArticle 122 of the Companies Actwill no longer apply to securities issued by SICAVs and that provisions relating to the pledging of securities issued by a SICAV will be included in the Companies Act (Investment Companies withVariable Share Capital) Regulations. It is also being proposed that SICAVs will no longer be required to notify the Registrar about the transfer and transmission of shares in the SICAV, again due to the fact that the Registrar does not retain information on the holders of shares in a SICAV and that this information does not need to be given to the Registrar in the annual return made by the SICAV. The requirement to submit a note of the transfer/transmission to the Registrar is rendered superfluous by the fact that the Registrar is at no point aware of who the shareholders of the SICAVare. A notification of such transfer or transmission therefore does not provide any added value to the information held in the Company Registry. Comments on the proposed amendments are to be submitted to the MFSA in writing by not later than Wednesday April 9.