Scanning Special June 2014

(ii) twelve months after the application date of the updated Guidelines. Requirements to publish information in the report and account of an existing UCITS would not apply in respect of any accounting period that ended be- fore the application date of the updated Guidelines.

cluded with the EP last February. The UCITS V Directive is therefore expected to be adopted and published in the Official Journal of the EU before the end of June 2014. YOU CAN FIND THE LINK TO THE EP PRESS RELEASE HERE. THE TEXT OF THE DIRECTIVE IS AVAILABLE HERE.

The 2 nd edition of EMIR/OTC Derivatives FAQ document published by the ALFI Background EMIR, Regulation 648/2012 of 4 July 2012 on OTC derivatives, central counterparties (CCPs) and trade repositories, entered into force on 16 August 2012. Many obligations under EMIR required addi- tional specification via regulatory and imple- menting technical standards and thus will take effect following the entry into force of these technical standards. The European Commis- sion on 19 December 2012 adopted 9 of these regulatory technical standards developed by ESMA. The technical standards were published as Commission Delegated Regulation in the Official Journal of the European Union. Others were published in February and March 2014. ESMA is to draft the remaining technical stand- ards for the Commission to adopt later on. What’s in there? This document, published on 17 April 2014, contains the answers of ALFI’s working group to the industries frequently asked questions about the regulatory and implementing techni- cal standards that complement the obligations defined under EMIR. This document currently covers primarily the following topics: the scope of EMIR, the report- ing requirements, the legal entity identifier. The updated version includes the information communicated by the CSSF in press release 14/11 (clarification of FX derivative definition and reminder of reporting duties to TRs), ex- pansion of the section regarding legal entity identifiers and the announcement of new TR registrations. ALFI's members are welcome to submit a question to the working group, which will re- view it and consider whether to include it in a future copy of this document. Please send your questions if any to info@alfi.lu. What’s next? ALFI’s EMIR FAQ is updated on a regular basis. Sections for frequently asked questions re- garding centrally cleared and non-centrally cleared OTC derivatives are foreseen.

THE FINAL REPORT IS AVAILABLE HERE.

UCITS V Directive adopted by the European Parliament Background On 3 July 2012, the European Commission adopt- ed a proposal to amend Directive 2009/65/EC on undertakings for collective investment in transfer- able securities (“UCITS IV”) in the areas of deposi- tary banks, remuneration rules and sanctions. The proposed Directive (“UCITS V”) aims to align the regulatory framework governing UCITS with the AIFMD framework in the above areas and to there- by strengthen investor protection in the EU. An informal agreement to back the Commission’s proposal was reached on 25 February 2014 be- tween the European Parliament (EP) and the Council of the European Union, agreeing on sev- eral amendments to the original text after heated rounds of negotiations. What’s in there? On 15 April 2014, the EP adopted its final position on UCITS V, reflecting the agreement reached with the Council last February. As the two co-legislators had already agreed on a set of amendments on an informal basis, the final text adopted by the EP featured only minor changes to the compromise text and no substantial amendments. The vote, held in plenary, marked the end of the first reading of the proposal by the European Par- liament under the ordinary legislative procedure. There was no material change compared to the compromise text covered in our February 2014 tracker. What’s next? The EP having completed its first reading of the proposal, the adopted text will also have to be formally approved by the Council for the draft Di- rective to be adopted at first reading (Council first reading). This will most likely be a straightforward procedure following the informal agreement con- The text was approved by 607 votes to 28, with 34 abstentions.

LUXEMBOURG

Immobilization of bearer shares Background

Bill 6625 was introduced on 4 October 2013 follow- ing FATF’s recommendations; it seeks to amend the law of 10August 1915 by setting rules applying to the immobilisation of bearer shares. In particular, it will put an end to the free transfer of bearer shares by de- livery of certificate and will require (i) the immobilisa- tion of the bearer shares by a professional depositary and (ii) the identification of the bearer shares holder. Bill 6625 covers both shares to be issued after the entry into force of the law and existing bearer shares. Only bearer shares exchanged on a regulated market are out of scope. Amongst other, bearer shares issued or to be issued by investment funds (SICAV or FCP) are in scope of Bill 6625. What’s in there? On 1 April 2014, the Luxembourg Government made some changes to Bill 6625. 1- Reduction from 18 to 6 months of the deadline for suspension of the voting and distribution of bearer shares which would not have been immobilised fol- lowing entry into force of the law; 2- Reduction from 8 to 5 years of the deadline for cancellation of bearer shares which would not have been immobilised following entry into force of the law; and 3- In addition to cash , companies may deposit at the Caisse des depôts et consignation any assets whose value is equivalent to the cancelled shares. What’s next? Bill 6625 to be voted by the Chambre des Députés (vote not scheduled so far).

YOU WILL FIND THE GOVERNMENT AMENDMENTS HERE.

YOU WILL FIND THE FAQ HERE.

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