There are now more alternative investor ‘ManCos’ in Luxembourg than for traditional Ucits funds, research shows.
PwC Luxembourg found that there were 220 ManCos licensed under the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD) in 2016, compared to 201 ManCos licensed under the Ucits directive, which regulates traditional funds.
‘ManCos’ refers to management companies – the legal entities that house funds regulated by the two key European Union funds directives.
There were 300 ManCos in Luxembourg at the end of last year, a rise of 20, and it was the first time the number of alternative investor ManCos was higher than for Ucits ManCos.
PwC said it reflected the success of the AIFMD, which was transposed into Luxembourg law in July 2013.
Laurent Carême, director at PwC Luxembourg, said over a third of the 300 ManCos had both licences and 43 of them had an extended licence for ‘MiFID’ activities.
Over a quarter of the alternative investor ManCos were from Germany (26%). Out of the rest, 18% were from Switzerland and 14% from the US. Of Ucits structures, most were from Switzerland (20%), the US (18%) and the UK (16%).
The majority of ManCos provided risk management and compliance services, including investment fund restrictions. But core administration services such as transfer agency, fund accounting and reporting were outsourced.
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