EFAMA has warned that the UCITS brand would lose its competitive edge under the proposed financial transaction tax (also referred to as the Tobin tax) and cause investors to seek alternative invest
EFAMA has warned that the UCITS brand would lose its competitive edge under the proposed financial transaction tax (also referred to as the Tobin tax) and cause investors to seek alternative investment opportunities. EFAMA said that the European Commission’s proposed transaction levy would have a major detrimental impact on the UCITS industry, its clients and the European economy. EFAMA has calculated that if the FTT had been applied at the start of 2011 the annual total impact of the tax would have reached EUR38billion, of which investors would have paid an estimated EUR15billion on the sales and redemptions of UCITS shares/units. The tax, unveiled by Jose Barroso in September 2011 would see financial institutions charged a 0.1 per cent levy on transactions with other financial institutions. The proposed date of introduction is 1 January 2014. Of course, being Europe’s leading financial centre, London would be hit the hardest were it to come into effect.
