This Is How U.K. Funds Will Have To Operate Next Time There Is A Liquidity Crisis

Wikimedia Commons
Property Funds Will Have To Close Much Sooner In Future Crises.

The Financial Conduct Authority is proposing new rules for open-ended property funds which would mean they close the door to redemptions more quickly during times of market volatility in the U.K.

The FCA has been reviewing the way funds for the person on the street holding illiquid assets, mainly commercial property, operate, in the wake of the run on property funds that occurred in the weeks after the Brexit vote in 2016.

That caused several funds to close their doors for up to half a year in order to sell assets and return money to unit holders. It was the only area of property to suffer any real distress in the wake of the Brexit vote, and the FCA said it is acting to protect the reputation of the U.K. financial services sector.

Under the proposed rules, funds would have to close for redemptions if their valuers said there was material uncertainty about the value of 20% or more of their assets. Open-ended funds are valued monthly, and weekly in times of market uncertainty.

Property funds would need to carry clearer warnings about the illiquid nature of the assets they buy. Managers of these funds would need to produce contingency plans for how they would react if there was a need to pay back investors quickly.

The consultation closes at the end of January.

“We expect these changes to result in fewer runs on funds holding illiquid assets, and to reduce complaints from retail investors about perceived unfair treatment when they exit such funds,” FCA Executive Director of Strategy and Competition Christopher Woolard said.

Continue reading this story with a free account

Log in or register
Sign up for more articles like this
Subscribe to Bisnow's London Newsletters
Related Stories

DOJ Charges LA Nonprofit Workers With Misusing $8.7M Meant For Housing Aid

First Rate Hike Since 2023 Lands Atop 5% Treasury Yield, Ratcheting Up Capital Pressure

Sovereign Fund Backs £500M Subterranean West End Development

Lone Star Seeks 58% Uplift In Under 3 Years With £175M UK Mall Sale

Discussing Strategic Capital Stack Structuring At Bisnow's Sept. 30 National Finance Event

GTIS Partners Rebrands As Brightshore Capital, Launches $250M Debt Platform

'Beyond A Routine Wobble': 10-Year Treasury Clears 5% Ahead Of Key Fed Meeting

Airbnb Launches $250M Fund To Invest In Affordable Housing

Judge Dismisses Suit Alleging Alexandria Misled Investors Over Portfolio Strength

Battersea Power Station Reveals Plans To Double Development Again

Canadian CRE Investors Shrug Off Trade War, Spend $9B On U.S. Assets

HPP, Blackstone Nab Extension On $1.1B Loan Tied To 2.2M SF Hollywood Portfolio