With Capital Markets Union at the top of the EU legislative agenda, Linklaters Luxembourg has announced the organisation of a conference on Tuesday 6 October 2015 which will focus on European Long Term Investment Funds (ELTIF).
The conference, to be held at Neimënster in Luxembourg City, will feature various speakers to address this core element of the CMU blueprint unveiled by the European Commission on 30 September which is a key priority of the current Luxembourg Presidency of the EU Council.
The ELTIF regulation is designed to develop new sources of funding for infrastructure projects and other areas of Europe's real economy. It sets out a common EU standard for long-term investment funds by harmonising legal framework and facilitating an increased role in the market for retail investment, and given Luxembourg's leadership position in the European fund industry, the country representes a central development feature of ELTIFs as a key plank in the financing of the continent's economy.
Speakers at the Linklaters conference will include Martin Parkes, director of government affairs and public policy at Blackrock, who will use his extensive experience on the financial team at law firms to discuss the fund industry's interest in ELTIFs and the Commission's impact assessment; Georges Bock, KPMG Luxembourg Managing Partner, who is specialised in investment management and structured finance and will comment of the proposed Luxembourg tax regime.
Related initiatives from the government and other stakeholders, including mooted accompanying legislation and work carried out by the CSSF and AFLi, will be examined by Freddy Brausch, Managing Partner at Linklaters Luxembourg and a driving force behind the Luxembourg ELTIF initiative, and Silke Bernard, a Counsel in Linklaters Luxembourg's Investment Management Group acting as co-chair of ALFI's ELTIFs working group.
"This initiative represents an opportunity for Luxembourg to capitalise on its expertise and impressive track record as a fund centre to make a major contribution to Europe's strategy to achieve sustained growth," commented Freddy Brausch, a recent addition to ALFI's Executive Committee as Vice-Chairman focusing on National Affairs. "It is also a vehicle that enables fund managers to offer a broader range of investment options to retail clients as well as institutions".
"This new type of investment vehicle is likely to be particularly attractive to investors not only because of its intrinsic return opportunities but the socially and/or economically responsible character of its investments," added Silke Bernard, who was heavily involved in representing the Luxembourg fund industry throughout the European law-making process. "They offer both individuals and institutions the opportunity to pursue financial goals while participating in the financing of social goods or assets such as roads, schools and hospitals. In due course, ELTIFs could become a label as widely known and understood as UCITS are today, both in Europe and beyond".
