International law firm Walkers has appointed Paul Farrell as partner in its new Dublin office, where he will head up Walkers’ Investment Funds Group in Ireland.
Farrell joins Walkers from one of Ireland’s largest law firms, where he practiced as an asset management partner, leading their alternative investment arm advising numerous banks and financial institutions in relation to the establishment of Irish funds over the past 13 years.
Farrell specializes in the legal and regulatory issues surrounding the establishment and maintenance of Irish mutual and alternative investment funds structured as UCITS funds, non-UCITS retail funds, professional investor funds (PIFs) and qualifying investor funds (QIFs). His expertise includes exchange-traded funds (ETFs), managed-account platforms, money market funds, master-feeder funds and the re-domiciliation of funds to Ireland.
With the approval of the final terms of the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD) by the European Parliament on November 11, 2010, and the removal of any uncertainty regarding the ability of non-EU fund managers to market funds in Europe, Walkers expects a greater number of asset managers from North America and elsewhere around the world to use Ireland as an access point to the EU market.
“With the passing of the Directive, Walkers’ Dublin office is well placed to act as the designated legal advisor responsible for ensuring investment managers’ compliance with the Directive, which is one of the requirements of the authorization process for non-EU managers,” Farrell says. “We see demand for investment fund product under the Irish regulatory framework among our fund manager clients. We aim to provide a seamless service to our clients, advising on the formation and maintenance of Irish funds, with the same high service levels that they have come to expect from Walkers.”
The value of Irish domiciled investment funds reached a record high of almost 900 billion at the end of August 2010 and with nearly 11,000 funds and sub-funds registered, Ireland’s fund industry is thriving and has developed into the European jurisdiction of choice for investment managers and promoters around the world.