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Qualifying Asset Holding Company (QAHC) regime

Historically the UK tax regime did not well support the use of a UK company as an under the fund asset holding company. Following proposals initiated by Macfarlanes, the UK government introduced the Qualifying Asset Holding Company regime in April 2022.

The campaign started in late 2018 with a meeting between Macfarlanes and HM Treasury. We sought to highlight the various barriers in the UK tax system for managers wanting to use a UK company as an under the fund asset holding company. Over the course of several meetings with UK government we shared technical solutions and industry insight to provide the government with the resolve to embark on a series of public consultations on the potential for a new regime.

Following the technical consultations, we joined the government stakeholder working group to help develop the legislation. We advised on the very company to elect into the regime on the launch day in April 2022 and have implemented many more QAHCs since then. Since the launch of the regime, over 300 QAHCs have been set up.

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Long-term Asset Fund (LTAF) regime

The LTAF is a new category of open-ended authorised funds designed to route retail money into long-term, illiquid assets such as private equity, private debt, and infrastructure.

The LTAF rules were finalised in November 2021. This concluded a policy process over several years that involved Macfarlanes throughout. We acted as legal adviser to the Investment Association, the trade body for the UK’s investment industry, that proposed the design of the LTAF from its earliest iterations. Macfarlanes’ advice spanned all aspects of the LTAF’s design from its legal structure and tax treatment through to the rules governing its distribution.

Given our extensive work on the LTAF regime, we are now represented by Lora Froud as a member of the Pensions and Private Capital Expert Panel which comprises a mix of industry experts tasked with reporting back to the Government on how to further unlock the flow of capital between Defined Contribution pension scheme and private fund managers.

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AI and Technology

We create customised technology solutions to solve the challenges of our private capital clients

Examples of our technology solutions

CarryHub

CarryHub streamlines every element of the carry award process, from document production, through execution, to ongoing maintenance of award information.

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    Automates document production.
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    Centralises the award grant process.
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    Provides a streamlined method of execution.
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    Acts as depository for award information.
Find out more about CarryHub
Carryhub - Macfarlanes Lawtech

Onboard

Onboard is a digital tool intended to ease the data collection process for investors in a fundraising. It uses a series of “smart” questionnaires to gather data from investors directly, in one specified format and without duplication.

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    Real-time oversight of fundraising and commitment progress.
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    A single point of truth for all information relevant to the fund.
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    Ease of access for all relevant parties such as fund managers and administrators.
Find out more about Onboard

Bastion

Bastion is a secure, cloud-based system designed to be a “hub” which helps private capital managers streamline their increasingly complex activities, often involving significant quantities of documentation, and manage structures, projects and day-to-day administrative activities.

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    Helps private capital managers keep track of documents, key contractual terms, dates and deadlines.
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    Stores data which is critical for analysis and informing decision making.
Find out more about Bastion
Bastion - Macfarlanes Lawtech

Elect

Elect is an end-to-end solution that both rationalises the most-favoured-nations (MFN) election process for all parties, and provides mechanisms for GPs to track and manage their post-MFN obligations. It removes well-known inefficiencies from the traditional MFN process and allows fund managers to get to the heart of the detail quickly.

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    Automated compilation of master side letter for fund manager review.
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    Fully tailored and digital investor disclosure and election experience.
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    Simplified tracking and management of a GP’s ongoing obligations to investors post-MFN.
Find out more about Elect

Contacts

Chris Tart-Roberts

Chris Tart-Roberts

Head of Lawtech and Chief Knowledge & Innovation Officer

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Sapheen Meran

Sapheen Meran

Legal Technology and Innovation Manager

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