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Investment Limited Partnership (Amendment) Bill 2020 passes all stages of Oireachtas following approval by Dáil Éireann

Aim of Bill is to promote investment, secure Ireland’s competitiveness and enhance our regulatory environment in international financial services

Minister of State Seán Fleming TD has announced that the Investment Limited Partnership (Amendment) Bill 2020 has been passed by both Houses of the Oireachtas as of Wednesday, 16 December, and will now be presented to the President for signing.

The modernisation of the Investment Limited Partnership Act 1994 is a longstanding priority of the Ireland for Finance Strategy and will enhance the development of Ireland’s international financial services sector. The Bill, when enacted, will serve as a means to promote investment, secure Ireland’s competitiveness and enhance our regulatory environment in international financial services.

Marking the passage of the Bill, the Minister for Finance, Paschal Donohoe TD said:

“The changes will help to further support Ireland's offering as a top-tier global location choice for financial services. The legislation supports the Ireland for Finance strategy and is well timed to take advantage of the Capital Markets Union agenda and to promote the establishment of private equity and venture capital vehicle funds in Ireland.

The Investment Limited Partnership (Amendment) Bill will allow Ireland to better compete for global private equity investment, with the aim of creating employment and securing Ireland’s reputation as an attractive location for the funds industry, which is subject to a robust and transparent regulatory regime.”

Minister of State at the Department of Finance, Seán Fleming TD, said:

 “This Bill provides an opportunity to align transparency requirements that apply to other Irish investment fund vehicles and to ensure the highest international standards are met across Irish fund vehicles, in order to enhance our reputation as a well regulated financial centre.”

ENDSNote to Editors:

• An Investment Limited Partnership (ILP) is a partnership between one or more general partners and one or more limited partners. A general partner has unlimited liability for the debts and obligations of the ILP, while a limited partner is not liable beyond the amount of their capital contribution. A limited partner must not take part in any of the conduct of the business of the ILP or risk losing their limited liability. All ILPs are regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.
• In addition to modernising the Investment Limited Partnership Act, which was first introduced in 1994, this legislation aligns it with more recent domestic and EU legislation and also makes technical amendments to the Irish Collective Asset Management Vehicles Act 2015.
• While the EU Anti Money Laundering (AML) legislative framework does not require the establishment of beneficial ownership registers for structures such as the ILPs and Common Contractual Funds (CCFs), this bill ensures that the highest standard international requirements will apply for these fund vehicles. It does so by extending AML Beneficial Ownership requirements to both ILPs and to CCFs. This will ensure that the Central Bank can verify PPSN information pertaining to beneficial ownership registers it operates.