Legal Guidance and Research / Experts / Lora Froud
Lora Froud#6126
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Lora Froud

Macfarlanes
Lora advises clients on the structuring and operation of onshore and offshore investment funds, both regulated and unregulated, and also advises on all legal aspects of asset management. She specialises in regulated funds. Her clients include operators, asset managers, depositaries and custodians of investment funds. She regularly assists clients with related EU and UK regulatory and compliance matters. She has particular experience in advising on the UCITS regime, the Retail Distribution Review, the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive, MiFID and PRIIPs. 
 
Lora is an active participant in Investment Association initiatives and is currently advising the FCA and IA on the proposed Long Term Asset Fund. She is also on the Alternative Investment Management Association working groups in relation to UCITS, AIFMD and Liquid Alternatives and is on the IBA’s Investment Funds Committee.
 
Lora is ranked as a leading individual in the retail funds space by a leading legal directory, The UK Legal 500, and is listed in The Lawyer’s Hot 100 2020.

Practice Area

Panel

  • Contributing Author

Qualified Year

  • 2005

Membership

  • Investment Association, IBA

Education

  • University of Bristol - Bachelor of Laws (LLB)

2 Contributions by Lora Froud

UK-authorised Qualified Investor Schemes (QIS): FCA regime, investment and borrowing powers, eligibility and promotion, and Genuine Diversity of Ownership tax requirements
PRACTICE NOTES
UK-authorised Qualified Investor Schemes (QIS): FCA regime, investment and borrowing powers, eligibility and promotion, and Genuine Diversity of Ownership tax requirements
This Practice Note examines the principal features of qualified investor schemes (QIS), a UK‑authorised fund framework, covering investment powers, eligibility requirements and possible tax consequences. What is a QIS? A QIS is a UK‑authorised fund first launched in 2004 to satisfy the fund management sector’s call for a Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) regulated investment vehicle operating under a comparatively light‑touch rulebook. It is aimed mainly at professional, institutional and sophisticated investors, including those within wealth management, and sits alongside the UK UCITS, non‑UCITS retail schemes (NURS) and long‑term asset fund (LTAF) regimes. For additional detail on UCITS, NURS and LTAFs, see Practice Notes: UK Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities (UCITS)—essentials, Non‑UCITS retail schemes (NURS) and The UK Long‑Term Asset Fund (LTAF). A QIS can be structured as an authorised unit trust (AUT), an open‑ended investment company (OEIC), or an authorised contractual scheme (ACS). For more on AUTs, OEICs and ACSs, see Practice Notes: OEIC authorisation and winding‑up, Authorised unit trusts (AUTs) and Taxation of authorised contractual schemes (ACSs)—overview. As it is not a UK UCITS, a QIS is treated as an alternative investment fund (AIF) under the UK alternative investment fund managers (AIFM) regime, within the UK regulatory landscape overall...
Financial Services
Unregulated collective investment schemes in the UK: definition, structures, risks, regulatory perimeter, financial promotion restrictions and AIFM regime
PRACTICE NOTES
Unregulated collective investment schemes in the UK: definition, structures, risks, regulatory perimeter, financial promotion restrictions and AIFM regime
This Practice Note explores the principal regulatory considerations concerning unregulated collective investment schemes (UCIS) in the UK. It outlines what UCIS are, the risks they present, the regulatory framework applicable to UCIS, limits on their treatment, and how they align with the UK alternative investment fund managers (AIFM) regime... What are unregulated collective investment schemes? In the UK, an unregulated collective investment scheme (UCIS) is any collective investment scheme (CIS) that is not supervised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) as either an authorised (regulated) fund or a recognised scheme. Businesses and individuals can consult the FCA register to verify whether a CIS is authorised or recognised. For more on authorised and recognised funds, including the meaning of a CIS, see Practice Note: Collective investment schemes—essentials... Overlap between a UCIS and an AIF In the vast majority of cases, a UCIS will also constitute an alternative investment fund (AIF) for the purposes of the UK AIFM regime derived from the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD) (Directive 2011/61/EU) (see UCIS and the UK AIFM regime below)... Location A UCIS can be set up, operated and/or managed within the UK or in a jurisdiction outside the UK...
Financial Services
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