As it continues its discussions with industry, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has extended the commencement of upcoming disclosure benchmarks for hedge funds to 1 February 2014.
Under a class order released in June 2012, hedge funds had been excluded from the Government's shorter product disclosure statement (PDS) regime up to 22 June 2014 until a permanent solution could be found.
ASIC decided operators who had issued a shorter PDS for a hedge fund on or before 22 June 2012 could continue to use the shorter PDS until 1 February 2014.
Regulatory Guide 240 ‘Hedge funds: Improving disclosure' was subsequently released in September last year in a move to improve investor awareness of product risks concerning complex managed investment schemes.
ASIC stated that it has now extended the start of RG 240 to allow consideration of submissions from industry.
In September last year, Zenith Investment Partners head of alternatives research Daniel Liptak said the regulator's definition of a hedge fund created a ‘catch-all' situation for a number of fund managers.
"ASIC's discussion with industry over this issue have been constructive," ASIC commissioner Greg Tanzer said.
"We are confident this extension best balances the need for ASIC to fully consider the submissions from industry and provide industry with sufficient time to adjust to any revised definition, while ensuring investors are provided with the key information under RG 240 as soon as possible."
