Country Manual Products
MAURITIUS (MU)
Please note the following material changes regarding the above-mentioned jurisdiction:
– According to a new interpretation of the local laws and regulations, it has been highlighted that the provision of Investment Research & Financial Analysis to local investors is generally not deemed distribution in Mauritius provided that both the issuer and the provider of the documents are in no way related/connected/associated to/with the relevant company nor receive any kind of inducements from the latter or any other person;
– Further, in alignment with the Country Manual Private Banking (CM PB), any active provision of investment advice without/outside the scope of an ongoing advisory agreement (spot advice) by foreign (unlicensed) service providers in/into Mauritius is no longer permitted. Accordingly, the Behaviour Template now provides the answer “NO” in the relevant scenarios;
– In accordance with a new interpretation of the local laws and regulations, it has been further stated that financial products provided upon a request of the relevant investor are generally not deemed to trigger the “local distribution rules” (irrespective of the type of reverse solicitation). In the Behaviour Template, the two situations “Reverse solicitation, Specific Financial Products” and “Reverse solicitation, Non Specific Financial Products” are therefore treated equally;
– For consistency purposes and in alignment with the CM PB, the answers related to the distribution of financial products in/into Mauritius within the framework of an ongoing advisory agreement (which covers the relevant financial products) have been eased, as the former “Private Placement Exemption” (considered as “current market practice” of foreign (unlicensed) service providers servicing local investors) is now directly reflected in the Behaviour Template. The Behaviour Template therefore now provides the answer “YES” (instead of “Grey zone/YES – Private Placement Exemption”) in the relevant scenarios;
– Finally, the alignment with the Country Manual Private Banking leads to the application of the “current market practice” (see above) in relation to product related activities in Mauritius. The Behaviour Template therefore now provides the answer “YES” (instead of “Grey zone”/”NO” in the relevant onshore scenarios).
Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us. info@brpsa.com
Best regards,