Europe’s long-awaited legislation on investment products is set for publication today with the proposal setting out a regime for structured and insurance products, as well as collective investment in transferable securities funds sold to retail investors.

Commenting on the Directive on Packaged Retail Investment Products, Penny Miller, a managing associate at international law firm Simmons & Simmons, said: ‘The proposal is core for the structured products industry and will directly affect regulation. It is aimed at providing consumers with a better understanding of the risk involved with investment decisions and when comparing different investment products across Europe.
‘The challenge will be to come up with a regulatory framework which can be flexible enough to deal with the wide range of investment products caught within its net. Lessons learnt from the UCITS IV requirement to produce KIIDs (key investment information documents) must be considered.’
The proposal is likely to be considered over the summer and, if approved, would apply to member states in two years.