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On 31 May 2022, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published a supervisory briefing (the Supervisory Briefing) addressed to EU national competent authorities (regulators) to promote "common supervisory practices" on the EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) and other pieces of EU legislation concerning financial sustainability. This was closely followed on 2 June 2022 by a publication of the European Supervisory Authorities – one of which is ESMA - (ESAs) which sets out clarifications (the ESA Clarifications) on the draft regulatory technical standards (RTS) under SFDR.

On 13 May 2022, the European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) submitted a number of questions to the European Commission relating to the interpretation of the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) and the Taxonomy Regulation (Taxonomy Regulation). Separately, the ESAs have also been asked by the European Commission for their input on possible amendments to the SFDR Delegated Regulation.

A regular briefing for the alternative asset management industry. 

ESG and sustainability issues continue to be a priority for policy makers and regulators globally. The impact of the Ukraine conflict on energy policy and the recent publication of the IPCC's (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) "state of the union" report on the slender window we have to take action in order to meet our climate targets both highlight the scale of the global challenge we face on climate issues.

On 6 April 2022, the European Commission published the long-awaited final version of the detailed rules – the Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS) – under the EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR). 

The Alpha and Omega of Regulation (via Omicron)?

Having said goodbye to another year of headlines dominated by COVID-19, with a Christmas and New Year overshadowed by a mixture of good and bad news about Omicron, it's not yet clear what degree of optimism about the year ahead is justified. At the very least, it is to be hoped that the World Health Organisation will not find it has to exhaust the Greek alphabet in naming any future new variants of concern.

A regular briefing for the alternative asset management industry. 

The FCA has issued a discussion paper seeking views on proposed new sustainability disclosure requirements and a sustainability labelling system.

On 18 October 2021, with just under two weeks to go before the UK hosts COP26, the UN Climate Change Conference 2021 in Glasgow, HM Treasury, the Department for Work & Pensions (DWP) and the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) published a joint paper entitled Greening Finance: A Roadmap to Sustainable Investing (the Roadmap).

A regular briefing for the alternative asset management industry. 

An industry-led Project has been launched with the publication of a standardised set of ESG metrics and a mechanism for comparative reporting.

"Sustainable finance" continues to dominate the legal and financial agenda for many asset managers at the moment, driven by multiple factors, including an emphasis on the climate crisis and an influx of legislation, particularly from the European Union, mandating financial organisations to demonstrate their sustainability credentials.

On 2 August 2021 various amending measures were published in the EU Official Journal which will require EU Alternative Investment Fund Managers, EU UCITS management companies and EU MiFID investment firms (including portfolio managers and adviser/arrangers) to integrate sustainability risks and factors into their policies and procedures.

The European Commission has published its long-awaited guidance regarding some of the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation's (SFDR) known unknowns. The Guidance provides some additional clarity on the application of the SFDR, but unfortunately does not clearly answer all the outstanding questions.

Firms will need to continue to navigate uncertainty in the absence of clear law, guidance or a developed market practice.

The regulatory technical standards supplementing the EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (EU SFDR)—which had been expected to apply from 1 January 2022—will be delayed by six months until 1 July 2022.

On 1 July, which marks the 10th anniversary of the UK's Bribery Act coming into force, the Serious Fraud Office ("SFO") secured court approval for a Deferred Prosecution Agreement ("DPA") with Amec Foster Wheeler Energy Limited ("AFWEL"). This latest DPA concludes yet another significant multi-year corruption probe and highlights the importance of continued ABC compliance measures for multinational organisations.

On 6 July 2021, the European Commission adopted a package of measures intended to help improve the flow of money towards financing the transition to a sustainable economy.

In the years leading up to Brexit, both the UK and the European Union had been busy developing sustainability policy and legislation. Now the UK has left the EU, it remains committed to being at the forefront of the sustainable finance agenda.

The European Commission has issued a Sustainable Finance Package comprising the EU Taxonomy Climate Delegated Act and the legislation integrating sustainability risks into the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive Delegated Regulation, the MiFID II Delegated Regulation and Delegated Directive and the UCITS Delegated Directive. 

The European Supervisory Authorities have issued a consultation paper on the content and presentation of certain Taxonomy-related disclosures under the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation.