Background on the PRIIPs regulation
The PRIIPs regulation was implemented by the European Union in 2018 and aims to improve transparency and comparability across PRIIPs in the EU.
An important component of the regulation is the obligation for PRIIPs manufacturers and distributors to produce a Key Information Document (“KID”), as well as keep it up to date. The KID is a document that follows a prescribed format covering several information points such as basic details on the vehicle and its investment objectives, transaction costs, a summary risk indicator, and performance scenarios under various market conditions.
Transaction costs
A key section of a PRIIPs KID focuses on the transaction costs incurred by the PRIIP. These costs must be calculated on an annualised basis, based on an average of the transaction costs incurred by the entity over the previous 3 years.
Transaction costs include both explicit and implicit transaction costs. To date, UCITS and AIFs have benefited from two methodologies for the calculation of implicit costs:
- Arrival price methodology; and
- New PRIIPs methodology.