In August 2012, the UAE Securities and Commodities Authority (“SCA”) introduced a new regulatory framework governing the marketing and sale of foreign funds to investors in the United Arab Emirates (the “UAE”) (the “Regulation”).
To the consternation of foreign (and offshore UAE) managers, the Regulation introduced a blanket prohibition on the marketing and sale of foreign funds to UAE investors without prior SCA approval, together with an additional restriction which limited the marketing and sale of SCA-approved foreign funds to locally registered promoters or, in certain circumstances, UAE domiciled representative offices. As a result, the informally recognised tolerated practice which had previously been relied upon by non-UAE licensed foreign (and offshore UAE) managers officially became non-tolerated practice.
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