On November 14, the FSA published its first consultation paper regarding the transposition of the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD) into UK law.

The consultation paper sets out proposals on the following areas:

• the prudential regime applicable to all types of alternative investment fund managers (AIFMs);
• FSA Handbook amendments to reflect the main Level 1 requirements of the AIFMD, such as operating requirements for AIFMs, duties of AIFMs when managing funds, and transparency obligations towards both the Financial Conduct Authority and investors themselves; and
• the regime applying to firms which act as depositaries of alternative investment funds, such as eligibility requirements, capital requirements and an independence requirement.

The deadline for consultation responses is February 1, 2013. It is anticipated that a second consultation paper will be published in February 2013.