The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will resume processing applications from French asset managers seeking U.S. adviser registration under a new agreement with France’s Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF).
The SEC said Oct. 20 that the agreement will guide its handling of both new applications and those already pending from AMF-supervised asset management companies. The applicants plan to offer investment adviser services in the United States.
The memorandum of understanding gives the regulators a way to consult and exchange information during supervision. It covers SEC-regulated investment advisers and investment companies, as well as AMF-supervised investment service providers operating in the United States and France.
SEC Chair Paul S. Atkins called the agreement an example of the “necessary spirit of cooperation in securities regulation.” AMF Chair Marie-Anne Barbat-Layani said closer cooperation reflects the regulators’ shared goals of developing capital markets, maintaining financial-system integrity and protecting investors.
