Licence extension
In principle, a licence is issued specifically for the management of one (or more) type(s) of AIF(s). A licensed manager may wish to extend its licence because it also wants to manage other types of AIFs (with other types of investments).Extension of licence for alternative investment fund manager
For example, you are licensed as a manager of an AIF that invests in financial instruments. If the intention arises to also manage an AIF that invests in real estate, you must apply for a licence extension. A manager can extend an existing licence if it also wants to provide investment services.
In addition, a manager who markets and/or manages a Money Market Fund (MMF) or intends to manage and/or market an MMF must apply to the AFM once for an extension of its licence.
Conditions In order to be eligible for a licence extension, you must also demonstrate that you can meet the requirements set out in legislation and regulations for the new type of AIF to be managed. In any case, the following conditions must be met:
- at least one executive director must be suitable for the types of investments with which the licence is extended.
- the description of the business operations must be adapted to the new types of AIF(s)/types of investments.
- a suitable depositary must have been appointed for each managed investment fund.
Costs and term
The costs of a licence extension are €10,500 per request.The AFM must take a decision within 13 weeks of receipt of the extension application. This period can be extended by 13 weeks. As soon as the AFM requests further data or information to supplement the extension application, the assessment period will be suspended until the AFM has received the requested information. If the AFM does not receive a (sufficient) supplement to the application within the period set by it, it may decide to disregard or dismiss the licence application.
Extending the licence for the management of Money Market Funds
With effect from 21 January 2019, it is no longer permitted to manage or market Money Market Funds (MMFs) without an application for a licence extension and the relevant MMFs having been notified to the AFM. A manager who markets and/or manages or wants to manage and/or market an MMF must apply to the AFM for a one-off extension of his licence.Conditions
In order to obtain an extension of your licence, you must be able to demonstrate that you meet the conditions arising from the Money Market Fund Regulation (MMFR), these conditions include:
- know your customer (KYC) policy
- internal credit quality assessment procedure
- data reporting obligations
A manager must not only extend its licence, but also notify all its MMFs marketed and/or managed separately. In order to be able to register an MMF with the AFM, you must be able to demonstrate that you meet the requirements arising from the MMFR. You can think of requirements for:
- the investment policy
- the valuation methodology
If you are not yet in possession of a licence or if it concerns a new (sub)fund, you must first apply for a licence as a manager and/or register the (sub)fund.
The AFM charges costs for both the application for the extension of the licence for the management of the MMF and for the notification of the MMF:
Extension of the licence: €2500 Notification of an MMF: €2500 per notified MMF
The statutory assessment period for the application is two months.