MEDIA RELEASE: Passing of CCIV legislation strongly supported by APIR (all comments below attributable to APIR chief executive, Chris Donohoe.)

“The passing of legislation for Corporate Collective Investment Vehicles (CCIV) in Federal Parliament will facilitate increased global regulatory harmony and drive demand for financial products across the region.

“As a financial services utility, APIR has long advocated for the proposed CCIV legislation to be enacted, as it will allow for the adoption of an investment structure that is in line with the structures used in overseas jurisdictions. The Australian unit trust structure for managed investment schemes, while suitable for the Australian market, does not translate well into international markets.

“Passing of the legislation therefore results in improved harmonisation of cross-border financial transactions, providing product manufactures with an investment vehicle that offshore investors are comfortable with.

“Given the CCIV follows the introduction of the Asia Region Funds Passport (ARFP) in 2018, both initiatives will work hand-in-hand to afford the Australian financial services industry the ability to expand into Asian growth markets, and vice versa.

“Global and domestic product manufacturers will be able to leverage APIR’s identification, data and TMD services for the new CCIV structures, and we are expecting to see increased demand for product and participant registrations in the medium term.

“The financial sector is truly global and investors are increasingly mobile. Now that the CCIV and ARFP can work in tandem, Australian funds have been brought into alignment with other globally accepted structures, such as UCITs (investment funds regulated by the European Union), and Australian funds can compete more effectively, internationally.”