Tag:Governance

1
United States: It’s Official-The SEC Issues a Revised Enforcement Manual for the First Time in Nearly a Decade
2
United States: From Fast Track to Fine-Tuned: How the SEC’s New Form N-PORT Proposed Amendments Refine the Rules for Fund Reporting
3
Australia: ASIC’s REP 820: Raising the Bar for Australia’s Private Credit Market
4
Europe: European Commission Delays “Non-Essential” Level 2 Measures Concerning AIFMD II and the UCITS Review
5
United States: The SEC “Flexes” Its (De)Regulatory Agenda
6
United States: The White House Working Group on Digital Asset Markets Report: Establishing Clear Regulation Based on a Digital Assets Taxonomy
7
Europe: UK Consultations on Reducing the Burden of the FCA Senior Managers Regime
8
Australia: Full Federal Court Finds in Favour of ASIC Appeal Concerning the Scope of the “Authorised Representative” Exemption
9
Europe: UK’s FCA Intensifies Scrutiny on Private Markets Valuations
10
Europe: UK’s FCA Seeks to Simplify Its Rules

United States: It’s Official-The SEC Issues a Revised Enforcement Manual for the First Time in Nearly a Decade

By: Thoreau Bartmann, Theodore Kornobis, and Neil Smith

Understanding the SEC’s Revised Enforcement Manual

Understanding the SEC’s enforcement approach is critical for practitioners and regulated entities alike. One of the few public documents describing how the Division of Enforcement conducts its business is the Enforcement Manual, which provides guidance to staff on conducting investigations, engaging with parties, and resolving matters—including the Wells process and cooperation credit.

Read More

United States: From Fast Track to Fine-Tuned: How the SEC’s New Form N-PORT Proposed Amendments Refine the Rules for Fund Reporting

By: Thoreau A. Bartmann and Christine Mikhael

On 19 February 2026, the SEC proposed further amendments to Form N-PORT (2026 Proposal). In August 2024, the SEC adopted amendments to Form N-PORT that required more frequent and accelerated reporting for registered investment companies (the 2024 Amendments). The 2024 Amendments would have required registered investment companies to file monthly Form N-PORT reports within 30 days of month-end and would have required information related to the newly amended Investment Company Act Names Rule (Names Rule).

Read More

Australia: ASIC’s REP 820: Raising the Bar for Australia’s Private Credit Market

By: Matthew Watts and Michelle Huo

Australia’s private credit market has experienced remarkable growth in recent years, with some estimates valuing it at approximately $200 billion.

Read More

Europe: European Commission Delays “Non-Essential” Level 2 Measures Concerning AIFMD II and the UCITS Review

By: Gayle Bowen, Shane Geraghty, Mathieu Volckrick, and Dr. Philipp Riedl

In a letter dated 1 October 2025, the European Commission has announced that it will not adopt any non-essential Level 2 acts in respect of AIFMD II or the UCITS review, before 1 October 2027 at the earliest. The list of “non-essential” measures now postponed includes technical standards (i) for loan-originating funds to maintain open-ended features and (ii) on information exchange between national regulators and EU institutions.

It is further reported that the Commission has considered amending, or even repealing, certain acts via an Omnibus package dedicated towards Level 2 measures.

The European Securities and Markets Authority was due to deliver the final draft measures on open-ended loan-originating funds to the Commission this month following their earlier consultation on this topic. It is unclear whether this will now happen.

The Commission letter comes as EU Member States are preparing for AIFMD II implementation.

In Ireland, the Department of Finance issued a Feedback Statement exercising a number of discretionary provisions provided to Member States under the Level 1 Directive. The Central Bank has also commenced a consultation on a complete overhaul of the Irish private funds regime, proposing a copy-out approach to AIFMD and relaxing a number of its requirements, to align with other EU jurisdictions.

On 3 October, Luxembourg published its draft transposition legislation implementing the AIFMD/UCITS review into national law. According to an initial assessment, the Bill implements the provisions of the AIFMD review on a one-to-one basis, without gold plating and exercises several options provided to Member States under the Level 1 Directive.

Germany published its draft legislation implementing AIFMD/UCITS review on 9 July and has also adopted a copy out approach without any gold plating.

United States: The SEC “Flexes” Its (De)Regulatory Agenda

By: Jennifer L. Klass, Lance C. Dial, and Pablo J. Man

The SEC’s latest regulatory agenda has officially been unveiled, and according to Chair Atkins the “regulatory agenda reflects that it is a new day” at the SEC. The regulatory agenda not only aims to clarify the regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies but also focuses on proposals to reduce compliance burdens and facilitate capital formation, including by providing investor access to private businesses.

Read More

United States: The White House Working Group on Digital Asset Markets Report: Establishing Clear Regulation Based on a Digital Assets Taxonomy

By: Sarah V. Riddell and Vivian K. Bridges

The President’s Working Group on Digital Asset Markets Report (the Report) emphasizes that a clearly defined taxonomy is essential for establishing a regulated digital asset market and identifying the appropriate federal regulator (i.e., the SEC or CFTC) based on a digital asset’s functions.

Read More

Europe: UK Consultations on Reducing the Burden of the FCA Senior Managers Regime

By: Zainab Kuku, Philip Morgan, and Andrew Massey

As part of the UK government’s strategy to boost the competitiveness of the UK financial services sector and support growth, the overall burdens of the Senior Managers & Certification Regime (SMCR) are to be reduced “by 50%”.

Read More

Australia: Full Federal Court Finds in Favour of ASIC Appeal Concerning the Scope of the “Authorised Representative” Exemption

By: Kane Barnett and Isaac Gilmore

The Full Federal Court (the Court) has ruled in favour of the Australian Securities and Investments Commissions’ (ASIC) appeal as to whether BPS Financial Pty Ltd (BPS) could rely on the ‘authorised representative’ exemption in relation to issuing their ‘Qoin Wallet’ product (see our previous post for background). The authorised representative exemption is commonly relied upon and allows a person or entity to provide a financial service under the Corporations Act on behalf of the holder of an Australian financial services licence (AFS licence) without having to hold an AFS licence itself. 

Read More

Europe: UK’s FCA Intensifies Scrutiny on Private Markets Valuations

By: Daniel Greenaway and Flavio Picaro

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority has published the findings of its multi-firm review of valuation processes for private market assets. This review follows the highlighting of vulnerabilities in private markets stemming, in part, from opaque valuations, in both the Bank of England’s June 2024 Financial Stability Report and IOSCO’s September 2023 report on emerging risks in private finance markets.

Read More

Europe: UK’s FCA Seeks to Simplify Its Rules

By: Laura Price and Kai Zhang

Acknowledging “longstanding concerns from firms about the length and complexity of [its] rules and guidance”, the UK’s FCA published a call for input in July 2024. It invited firms to comment on whether some FCA rules may be unnecessary following introduction of the outcomes-based Consumer Duty. It has now outlined its proposed approach in a Feedback Statement, explaining that its aims are to achieve more flexibility, more predictability, and improved efficiency. The approach includes:

Read More

Copyright © 2026, K&L Gates LLP. All Rights Reserved.