UCITS

Dillon Eustace is a leading adviser on Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities (UCITS), the gold standard EU investment fund product.

UCITS are collective investment schemes based on harmonised EU regulation. UCITS established and authorised in one EU Member State effectively have a marketing “passport” – they can be sold throughout the EU with a single home member state authorisation and the principle of mutual recognition. The rules for permitted asset classes and governance requirements continue to evolve, ensuring that UCITS remains a popular and dynamic investment management product.

Our experienced asset management and investment funds specialists act for UCITS of all kinds – including a large number of umbrella type and single strategy type UCITS with differing liquidity, legal and contractual arrangements, both externally managed and self-managed. We also advise clients using all the leading service providers based in Dublin.

Dillon Eustace offers a comprehensive UCITS advisory service. We have significant experience of advising on all types of UCITS structures, including Irish Collective Asset-management Vehicles (ICAVs), investment companies, unit trusts, and common contractual funds. Our service covers a wide range of product types and strategies, including traditional long only equity and bond UCITS, structured UCITS, UCITS platforms, alternative UCITS, exchange traded funds (ETFs), money market funds, and liquidity funds.

In recent years, we have advised clients on a series of changes implemented at European level. These changes were made to further simplify the European passport process for UCITS, introduce master/feeder type structures, create a framework for cross-border fund mergers, replace the simplified prospectus with a key investor information document and introduce further measures in relation to the UCITS management company passport.

Working in this dynamic environment, Dillon Eustace continues to play a leadership role in UCITS evolution domestically and internationally. Our pioneering work includes advising on the first ever UCITS cross-border merger. We work hard to keep ahead of all legal and regulatory changes in the UCITS world. Our active internal working groups operate across an extensive range of legal matters, ensuring a smooth implementation of any legal or regulatory changes. Through our close involvement with relevant industry bodies we are proactive advocates of fund-related reforms and product development. We are also well placed to argue against proposals – whether at EU or Irish level – which are not in our clients’ interests.

Our services include negotiating with the Central Bank on a wide range of issues and making regular submissions to the Central Bank. Recent examples include submissions on new structures, on client money rules, HK Stock Connect, dividends out of capital, class level income maximisation, and ETF related issues.

Through our Fund Registrations Unit, we provide a tailored, efficient and responsive service to give clients access to relevant markets in a timely manner, while at the same time assisting compliance with all local regulatory requirements and obligations.

Dillon Eustace is committed to remaining in the vanguard of UCITS developments. Our highly experienced investment funds team of 40 lawyers, including 15 partners, offers a truly international outlook with Irish, US, UK and Cayman law specialists. We continue to invest in the expertise required to make us the number one choice for advice on fund product design, formation, authorisation and launch, prospectus and contractual documentation negotiation, and interaction with regulators and exchanges.