FCA confirms forbearance in relation to investment trust disclosure requirements

Following the Treasury’s announcement that it would be excluding certain investment trusts from the PRIIPs Regulation and other EU-assimilated law, the FCA has confirmed it will be applying new regulatory forbearance in relation to investment trust disclosure requirements.

From 19 September 2024 – the date of the Treasury’s announcement – until legislation to amend the PRIIPs Regulation comes into force, closed-ended investment funds whose ordinary shares (of each class if there is more than one) are admitted to trading on a UK regulated market or a UK multilateral trading facility may choose not to follow the requirements of the PRIIPs Regulation, associated technical standards, and / or Articles 50(2)(b) and 51 of the MiFID Org Regulation.

Although the FCA will not be taking supervisory or enforcement action, the regulations nonetheless remain in force during the forbearance period, and the regulator notes that firms may need to consider any other implications that non-compliance with the legislation may have for their businesses.