By Olivia Munro – As the deadline to the GDPR steadily approaches, it is important to start preparing for the regulation if you haven’t already.  In case you aren’t aware, the EU took a major step to protect their citizens’ personal data and privacy rights by instating the EU Greater Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which is scheduled to go into effect on 25 May, 2018.  However, just because the GDPR is an EU regulation, it doesn't mean that US based firms are exempt. 

By Nick Bayley (pictured), Duff & Phelps – It’s 3 January 2018. Hallelujah! Christmas has been and gone. The festive cheer over for another year. But there’s one more gift welcoming everyone as they head back to their offices: MiFID II has officially come into effect. 

Last July, the Securities Commission of The Bahamas (the Commission) embarked on a process to overhaul the Investment Funds Act. The Investment Funds Act 2003 was largely structured to be in line with the operations of fiduciary administrators and did not necessarily account for the appropriate regulation of the various roles within a fund structure. 

The Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA) and Bundesverband Alternative Investments (BAI) are to jointly engage with policymakers and regulators in the European Union and globally on issues of interest to their respective memberships.

The days of thinking about single jurisdictions are long gone. When structuring a large private equity fund, for example, it is likely going to contain international investors (the US, Europe, Asia) and is, in effect, a commercial deal between all interested parties to draw down the money. The reality is, different investors have different preferences. 

In May this year, CMS underwent the biggest tripartite merger in legal history in the UK, combining with Nabarro and Olswang to create a law firm with the third biggest footprint and 4,500 lawyers working globally.

Neuberger Berman Investment Management (Shanghai) Limited has secured registration as a private fund manager with the Asset Management Association of China (AMAC).

By Arne Bolch, GSK – On 1 August 2016, the Luxembourg Act on reserved alternative investment funds (RAIF), entered into force. It allowed for the setting up of RAIFs, with their defining feature of indirect supervision by their AIFM rather than direct supervision by the CSSF. 

In 2013, at the time the AIFM Directive was introduced, Luxembourg's lawmakers took the opportunity to revamp the two existing limited partnerships with legal personality – the partnership limited by shares (SCA or société en commandite par action) and the common limited partnership (SCS or société en commandite simple).

Unless you've been on Mars for the last 12 months, you will be only too aware of the chaos that has been uncorked following the UK's decision, in June 2016, to leave the European Union.