Author Archives: Martin Scharnke

The EU Prospectus Reform 2012 and Consequences for Structured Products Prospectuses

Seven years after the entry into force of the harmonized EU prospectus regime with the EU Prospectus Directive 2003/71/EC (PD) and the EU Prospectus Regulation EC/809/2004 (PR), a major revision of the EU prospectus regime will enter into force on 1 July 2012 when EU member states will be required to implement EU Directive 2010/73/EU (Amending PD) into national law and the amendments to the PR set out in the delegated EU Regulation EU/486/2012 (Amending PR) will enter into force. Many of the changes will affect the prospectus documentation for structured products disproportionately, as one focus point of the change targets base prospectuses and significantly restricts the permitted contents of final terms while another focus point targets the summary which will gain in significance and become the key source of information for retail investors. This article analyzes selected areas of change of particular relevance for structured product issuers and describes initial trends how to cope with the new requirements.