The MFA, together with three other trade associations, has requested that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) extend the compliance deadline for the amended Form PF requirements by six months.
“A modest extension will enable alternative asset managers to address technical challenges and ensure high-quality, consistent reporting to the SEC and CFTC. The industry has worked to comply with the new form, but the implementation timeline is unrealistic and impractical,” said Bryan Corbett, MFA President and CEO.
The amendments to Form PF impose new disclosure requirements on alternative asset managers and were jointly adopted by the SEC and CFTC in February 2024. According to the MFA, the “rushed implementation timeline creates significant compliance challenges for managers”.
The MFA has highlighted incomplete technical specifications with the XML schema necessary for Form PF reporting yet to be finalised, leaving firms and their vendors unable to finalise or adequately test reporting systems.
In addition, many firms are simultaneously preparing for new short sale reporting requirements, beginning January 2025, further staining resources, while end-of-year system freezes limit firms’ ability to implement and test reporting changes in time for the current compliance date.
The letter argues that a six-month extension would mitigate these challenges and enhance the quality and consistency of the data provided to regulators. Without an extension, alternative asset managers will face challenges complying with the rule and regulators risk collecting incomplete or inconsistent data, according to the MFA.
