The UK Financial Conduct Authority has launched its GABRIEL (gathering better regulatory information electronically) online system for the collection, validation and storage of regulatory data, helping firms to comply with the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD) reporting rules, as private industry solutions continue to come to market.
GABRIEL is designed to give alternative investment fund managers an easy way to submit various reports to the UK jurisdiction, a requirement under the AIFMD that came in to force on 22 July 2013.
Under the directive, fund managers have to file an Annex IV report detailing information such as exposures and concentrations, leverage, borrowing and risks. They can now submit managers’ reports (AIF001), fund reports (AIF02) and capital adequacy reports (FIN066, FIN067 and FIN068) using GABRIEL.
The first wave of reports are due on 31 October and the impending deadline has seen many independent companies launching their own solutions to make the reporting regulations simpler for clients.
BNP Paribas Security Services has launched a service allowing clients to outsource their Annex IV reporting obligations, aiming to reduce the administrative and financial burden for fund managers.
The system collects data from the BNP Paribas systems and from the fund managers themselves. It then automatically performs the transformations, calculations and formatting required, generating an XML fine in the European Securities and Markets Authority-defined standard, ready for submission to the FCA, or any other European regulatory authority.
John Vaughn, head of product for fund administration and middle office outsourcing at BNP Paribas, said: “We believe our solution brings simplicity to a complex problem, shortens
production time through efficient automation, and offers full transparency so every data field can be traced and explained.”
The system also allows fund managers to review and validate all sections of the report before it is submitted to the regulator.
“A very important aspect of this is that it is managed with a full audit trail clearly showing where each data item came from,” said Vaughn.
The release of the BNP Paribas system came on the same day as an AIFMD reporting solution from Pacific Fund Systems (PFS).
The software solutions firm incorporates its reporting system in to a new version of its PFS-PAXUS software. This already featured some regulatory reporting functions and now automatically generates the XML files for submission.
Director of PFS, James Eldershaw, said that much of the data that alternative investment fund managers are now required to submit is already held within the software, meaning that clients have an advantage when it comes to Annex IV reporting.
He added: “We have created new fields in PFS-PAXUS for Annex IV data that previously existed outside of the system. This new capability converts a particularly complex and time-consuming exercise into an easy-to-use and highly automated solution. The XML files that PFS-PAXUS generates are for both the fund manager and the underlying funds that they manage.”
Using the GABRIEL system, fund managers can submit reports in four ways: via online or offline forms, web upload or through direct communications. The FCA is also offering free training, and ultimately, it intends to significantly simplify the AIFMD reporting process.
Nonetheless, Vaughn stressed that fund managers must ready themselves for the new reporting obligations.
“Alternative investment find managers need to make sure they are prepared well in advance by understanding which reports are needed when, preparing the data sources they will use, gathering static data, and deciding their policy on optional fields.”
“They will need a robust process to perform the various data transformations needed. We recommend that thorough testing should be done before the end of the reporting period to ensure things run smoothly during the reporting period.”
BNP Paribas has also paired up with IT platform provider Acarda to create a new guide to the reports, ‘The AIFMD Reporting Challenge – A Practical Guide to Meeting Annex IV Requirements’, which aims to break down and explain the complex new reporting rules.
The guide explains the reporting process, how to classify fund activity correctly and how to make sure the correct information is submitted.
The FCA is also launching GABRIEL for mortgage market review (MMR) reporting, effective for reporting periods ending on or after 1 January 2015, and it is already available for consumer credit reporting.
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