Panel of Experts Discuss Challenges Arising from the New Key Investor Information Documents (KIIDs)

DailyFinance.com – December 16, 2010

TransPerfect, the world’s largest privately held provider of translation services, hosted a panel discussion to address the various challenges posed to stakeholders within the asset management space as a result of the upcoming UCITS IV regulations and the shift to Key Investor Information Documents (KIIDs).

UCITS (Undertakings for Collective Investments in Transferable Securities) are a series of European Union directives that apply to all investment funds sold to the retail market in Europe. Under the requirements of UCITS IV, which will go into effect on 1 July 2011, fund managers will have to create KIIDs for every UCITS fund and translate them for every European nation in which the funds are authorised. As the deadline draws nearer, the tens of thousands of funds available within Europe are challenged with developing a strategy for creating and translating KIIDs quickly and cost effectively while still meeting the stringent requirements of the directive.

To provide thought leadership on the emerging requirement, TransPerfect assembled an expert panel featuring industry professionals from the UK, Dublin and Luxembourg:

Mikkel Bates, Director – Kii Hub
Darren Judge, Senior Manager – KPMG
Michal Mengal, Partner – Elvinger, Hoss & Prussen
Neil Simmonds, Partner – Simmons & Simmons
Moderated by Michelle Moran, Partner – Dechert

The event was held at the Andaz hotel on Liverpool Street in London and was attended by more than 50 professionals from within the asset management space, including attorneys, practitioners and compliance officers. Firms in attendance included Allen & Overy, Akin Gump, Bank of New York Mellon, Baring Asset Management, BlueBay Asset Management, Eversheds, Morrison & Foerster, Northern Trust, PricewaterhouseCoopers and SJ Berwin.

Central topics/discussion points were:

• Available reference texts on the UCITS IV regulations and the production of KIIDs
• What liability will be attached to the Prospectus versus the KIID
• Advantages and disadvantages of Representative Share Class vs. Multi-Share Class KIIDs
• Requirements for the SRRI and risk narrative
• Defining ‘Simple Language’
• Best practices for the translation of KIIDs
• The ‘grandfathering’ regime applied to existing UCITS

Neil Simmonds, Partner at Simmons and Simmons, described the event as "a timely and thought provoking debate on the legal and resource challenges that are facing the industry in the run up to implementation".

To receive a notification when a video of the event becomes available, email KIID@transperfect.com.

About TransPerfect
With revenue of over $250 million, TransPerfect is the largest privately held language services provider in the world. From offices in 66 cities on 5 continents, TransPerfect offers a full range of services in over 100 languages to multinationals worldwide. With a global network of over 4,000 linguists and subject-area specialists, TransPerfect is the largest translation company to be fully ISO 9001:2008 and EN 15038:2006 certified. TransPerfect is headquartered in New York and has regional headquarters in London and Hong Kong. For more information, please visit our website at www.transperfect.com.