Practice Areas
Ash Saluja has over 20 years of experience advising clients on regulatory and commercial matters.
Clients include banks, broker-dealers, funds, investment managers and advisers, exchanges, platforms and trading facilities, insurers and insurance intermediaries, as well as the large corporate/pension fund clients and suppliers of these types of institutions.
Ash advises on the authorisation and conduct of business requirements, corporate governance, regulatory capital, client money and assets, product design and distribution, cross border business, insider dealing and market abuse, anti-money laundering requirements, as well as the regulatory aspects of mergers and acquisitions, restructurings, joint ventures and outsourcings.
Work Highlights
Over a dozen FSA/FCA/PRA regulated investment advisers/managers, broker-dealers and banks over the past five years, including advice on regulatory structuring, as well as the preparation of the applications and supporting materials, policies and procedures and related agreements. Advising on ongoing compliance obligations under the FCA/PRA Handbooks and UK/EU legislation.
Several banking and investment groups on the regulatory aspects of their reorganisations, including authorisations/permissions, capital and liquidity issues, change of control approvals, cross border services and branch passports and related governance/prudential issues.
Fund managers on the implementation of the AIFMD. Also advising numerous firms (banks, platforms, broker dealers and investment/fund managers) in relation to changes in the FCA’s client money and assets rules. Currently advising several clients on MiFID II projects.
A global investment consultant on the establishment of an umbrella fund structure for “fund of funds” and “multi manager” arrangements post AIFMD. Also advising a large general insurer on the establishment and on-going activities of two in-house umbrella investment funds (an AIF and a UCITS) and the establishment of a new UK portfolio manager.
Over twenty large institutional investors on a range of issues including potential investments in pooled funds, custody and segregated mandate arrangements, transition management and bespoke investment structures.
UK private banking groups on the implications of their offerings, including on regulatory change such as RDR, cross border business, conflicts of interest, suitability and appropriateness obligations, inducements rules and mis-selling/s166 issues and financial promotions.
Several innovative new retail products and services, from rolling cash spread bets, exchange traded CFDs, pooled cash management arrangements and new personal pension products. Covering design and structuring, drafting product terms, compliance with UK and overseas regulatory obligations and cross-border distribution and marketing.
The establishment of new “multilateral trading facilities” in the EU facilitating the auction and trading of electricity CFDs, credit derivatives and bonds. Also advising on the potential launch of new exchanges and products.
Utility companies and commodities traders in relation to the impact on their activities of REMIT, EMIR and changes to MiFID and MAD, and whether their activities require authorisation under the UK/EU financial services regime.