MAURITIUS Law and Practice Contributed by: Bhavna Ramsurun, Pinki Mahata, Lorna Senivassen and Shreya Mungur, BLC Robert & Associates
sion of licences) where it has reasonable cause to believe that a licensee is: • committing or has committed a breach of the relevant laws; or • carrying or has carried on an activity that may cause prejudice to the soundness, integrity and stability of the financial system of Mauri - tius or to the reputation of Mauritius. Where additional information or clarifications are required by the FSC with regard to fund applica - tions, the FSC will usually raise such queries with the administrators via email. It is also possible to request face-to-face meetings with the FSC. 2.4 Operational Requirements There are no particular regulatory restrictions or requirements in relation to the types of invest - ments for AIFs. Any person wishing to establish a specialised fund that invests in real estate, derivatives, commodities or any other product must apply to the FSC for a decision on whether such fund would be authorised. An open-ended fund categorised as an expert fund or a professional CIS is required to appoint a custodian that holds a custodian licence under the Securities Act 2005 to hold and safekeep the assets of the fund. Only banks and trust com - panies that are subsidiaries of banks are eligi - ble for a custodian licence. If the fund holds a GBL, it may appoint a foreign custodian with the approval of the FSC. The appointed custodian must act independently from the fund manager and the fund. However, CEFs are exempt from the requirement to appoint a custodian – with the assets being held in the name of the fund itself. Risk Although there are no specific rules on risks for exempted funds, the offering memorandum of
such a fund must disclose all material risks to potential investors so as to enable them to make an informed decision on whether or not to invest in the fund. Valuation and Pricing AIFs are free to specify the method and frequen - AIFs are not regulated as strictly as retail funds. Given that they can only be offered to sophis - ticated or high net worth investors, they are spared the application of the various prudential and conduct of business rules that are generally applicable to retail funds. Insider Dealing and Market Abuse The Securities Act 2005 contains a chapter on market abuse, which creates the offences of insider dealing, false trading, market rigging, fraud, and deceptive conduct involving securi - ties. The prohibition on insider dealing is a gen - eral prohibition applicable to any person who uses insider information to deal in the securities of a reporting issuer (directly or indirectly) or who discloses insider information unlawfully. Transparency cy of their valuations. System and Controls AIFs have reduced filing and publication require - ments. Nonetheless, they are still required to file annual financial statements and to keep the reg - ulator informed of any material change in the AIF. Money Laundering All funds must comply with: • the Financial Intelligence and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2002 (inspired by the Finan - cial Action Task Force principles); • the Financial Intelligence and Anti-Money Laundering Regulations 2018; and
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