Laws and Regulations

International law firms Herbert Smith Freehills and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett have announced plans to establish offices in Luxembourg, aiming to strengthen their presence in the private capital sector.

The chair of the European Securities and Markets Authority (Esma), Verena Ross, still believes that a ‘basic and simple’ investment product could help convince more European savers to start investing.

Efama chief Tanguy van de Werve highlights the urgent need for tax harmonisation to overcome fragmentation and create a competitive, unified European market.

Luxembourg should take a page from Ireland’s playbook and deepen its relationship with the United States. The European Union is gradually eroding the regulatory flexibility and pragmatism that once enabled Luxembourg to attract international investors and dominate the fund industry.

Ireland’s decision not to introduce its own version of Luxembourg’s highly successful Reserved Alternative Investment Fund (Raif) signals a cautious approach in the global race for private market leadership and reflects concerns over potential problems with liquidity and valuations in this market.

With the European Commission confirming on Tuesday that the Level 2 Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS) for the revised European Long-Term Investment Funds (Eltifs) regime are on track, the alternatives industry is shifting its focus towards overcoming operation challenges such as on co-investments, liquidity management and handling different tax regimes across the EU market.

The recently enacted NPL law in Luxembourg brings critical updates to credit servicing and purchasing, writes Sebastiaan Hooghiemstra at Loyens & Loeff Luxembourg in their latest contribution as member of Investment Officer’s panel of experts.

Plans to increase Europe’s capital markets capacity hinge on giving retail investors access to private assets, but liquidity remains a sticking point. Evergreen funds, designed to offer investors some liquidity in otherwise illiquid assets, are being touted as a solution.

Martine Solovieff, Luxembourg’s top criminal prosecutor, has issued a stark warning regarding the country’s persistent struggle with financial crime investigations, citing overwhelming caseloads and staffing shortages as key obstacles.

In a move to strengthen valuation practices across the investment fund industry, Luxembourg’s financial supervisor CSSF on Wednesday unveiled a glimpse of plans to revise its valuation guidelines for investment fund managers. The update is due in 2025.