The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is beefing up portfolio manager disclosure requirements for variable annuity issuers.[@@]
The agency has published a final rule that will require investment companies to give customers more information about potential conflicts between their interests and the portfolio managers' interests. The SEC proposed the rule in March.
The rule will take effect Oct. 1, and investment companies must start changing their registration forms to comply with the regulation in February 2005.
One big change will require VA issuers to provide the same information about portfolio management teams on their Form N-3 registration forms that mutual fund companies must provide on their Form N-1A and Form N-2 registration forms.
"Currently, Form N-3 does not require disclosure about portfolio managers," Sanjay Lamba and Christopher Kaiser, SEC officials, write in a discussion of the final regulation that appears today in the Federal Register.
Fund companies have had to name top fund advisors.
Now, the SEC also is increasing the management team listing requirements.
