Financial Services partner Neil Robson recently spoke with Bloomberg Markets regarding the huge number of firms that may escape the full brunt of the MiFID II regulations that are set to begin on January 3, 2018. To do so, firms are dropping their MiFID licenses and joining the ranks of alternative investment fund managers (AIFM), which have easier reporting and transparency requirements.
Originally, firms viewed MiFID as easier to comply with, so they chose to receive licenses under it instead of AIFMD. Today, however, AIFMD appears to be a better choice, giving firms the chance to eliminate a number of expensive and disruptive MiFID II responsibilities. Neil, however, said, "I don't think that the differences are that significant in the UK overall, as the remuneration principles that apply to all regulated firms are ostensibly the same." ("Lots of Firms May Dodge the Full Brunt of MiFID," August 23, 2017)
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