DFSA amends property fund rules; to offer more online services

The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) has amended its rules for specialist property funds, and has begun a consultation on extending the range of transactions that it will offer online.

DFSA amends property fund rules; to offer more online services

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A fund manager of a property fund must now ensure that whenever a valuation report is prepared for the fund, the date of the valuation report must be the date the fund is valued, if the report is being prepared for the purpose of calculating its net asset.

Or the date should not be more than six months before the date on which an offer document, or a circular, or a sale or purchase agreement is issued. This period has been extended from the previous three month requirement.

The authority has already amended regulations over borrowing limits, investment restrictions and custody requirements for property funds.

International standards

The changes are all part of an effort by the DFSA to simplify its current rules and align them better with international standards while still catering to specific features of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) market.

Last week it introduced a new framework for the regulation of Money Market Funds (MMFs), drawing on the work that the Financial Stability Board (FSB) and the International Organisation of Securities Commission (IOSCO) have done in this area.

On Sunday the DFSA also announced that it intends to increase the range of transactions, and interactions, which can take place online. It said this was part of a contribution to the fulfilment of the Government of Dubai’s “Smart City” initiative.

In its 2015/16 Business Plan, the DFSA icommitted tself to making effective use of information technology to help achieve strategic themes of Delivery and of Sustainability. The deadline for providing comments on the latest consultation paper is 14 April 2016. 

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