Apply to be a registered AIFM

Learn how to apply to us to be a small registered UK Alternative Investment Fund Manager (AIFM), including SEF and RVECA managers.

Application and annual fees

Your application fee[9] falls into pricing category 3.

You'll also be subject to a periodic (annual fee[10]) of £781.

How to apply

You must use our online system Connect[13] to apply to be registered as any of the following:

1. An internally managed, closed-ended investment company (such as an investment trust)
This will apply if the Board of the AIF has chosen not to appoint an external AIFM – in other words, if you're both the firm and the fund: the AIFM and the AIF.

2. A small property UK AIFM (ie an external manager of certain property funds)
This will apply if your AIF is a Collective Investment Scheme (CIS) that holds the majority of its assets as land (directly or indirectly). In this case, you must appoint a fund operator with the Part 4A permission of ‘establishing, operating or winding up a collective investment scheme'.

3. A manager of Social Entrepreneurship Funds (SEF) or Registered Venture Capital Funds (RVECA)
If you're a manager wishing to use the SEF or RVECA label for a fund, you'll need to demonstrate what most of the investments in the fund are for (see below).

Using the SEF label for a fund

70% of the capital received from investors must be invested in social undertakings where the primary objective is to:

provide services or goods which generate a social return
employ a method of production of goods or services that embodies its social objective, or
provide financial support exclusively to social undertakings as defined in the 2 points above

Using the RVECA label for a fund

70% of the capital received from investors must be invested in small and medium sized enterprises that meet the definition of a qualifying portfolio undertaking, as described in article 3 of the amended Venture Capital Funds regulations[14].

Under the amended Venture Capital Funds regulations[17], both internally managed RVECA/SEF managers and external managers of RVECA/SEF must have an initial capital of €50,000. Own funds shall at all times amount to at least one eighth of the fixed overheads incurred by the manager in the preceding year. Other conditions also apply for both types of fund.

Our register of small registered UK AIFMs below includes UK managers of SEFs and RVECA funds.

What to include

Before submitting your application, make sure you've prepared:

your regulatory business plan and the other things we expect to see in all applications[15]
materially complete marketing material
incorporation documents relating to the AIF
an offer document for each AIF
the relevant required forms and your financial forecast (see below)

Required forms – small registered UK AIFMs

Please complete all the forms below, which you can access on Connect:

Application for entry on register of small registered UK AIFMs
Schedule of registered AIFs

Required forms – SEF and RVECA managers

Please complete all the forms below, which you can access on Connect:

Application for entry on register of SEF or RVECA managers
Schedule of registered AIFs
Notification of senior personnel that effectively direct the business of a SEF and or RVECA fund

Financial forecast

You need to show that your firm has sufficient resources.

Your financial forecast should be for 3 years and include:

profit and loss (monthly for Year 1, year-end for Years 2 and 3)
balance sheet
cash flow and capital analysis

Please provide an unprotected Excel spreadsheet with assumptions and formulas left visible (ie include working papers showing the assumptions on which the calculations have been based).

The monthly profit and loss forecast must disclose all the following:

gross income, analysed between registered and unregistered activities
business expenditure, relevant annual expenditure and analysis of the major overhead expenditure
profit before taxation

SEF and RVECA managers – in your monthly calculation, demonstrate how your firm's capital resources will meet your resource requirements.

Find out more about preparing your firm's financial information[16].

Other areas to consider

Your application should include information on the areas below. This needs to be detailed enough for us to assess the potential impact on your proposed business model.

Liquidity management
Explain how your portfolio/fund liquidity management policy ensures portfolio/fund liquidity is managed in line with our requirements and the expectations of your clients.

Consumer Duty
Explain your plans for ensuring your business can provide good outcomes for retail customers and will meet our cross-cutting and outcome rules[17]. Find out more about the Consumer Duty[18].

Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)
If ESG-related advice, products or services are expected to be a material part of your business model, we expect you to include information on your specific ESG competencies, any data products and your marketing strategy.

Register of small registered UK AIFMs

Our register lists all current and lapsed small registered UK AIFMs that we've recorded since November 2013.

See the register of small registered UK AIFMs[19]

Applying for fund authorisation

Investment funds established in the UK and structured as collective investment schemes (CIS) must be authorised by us to be promoted to retail investors in the UK.

Find out how to apply for fund authorisation[20].

13/09/2024 : Information changed Fees category updated

01/07/2024 : Link changed Link to list of small registered UK AIFMs updated

05/07/2023 : Information changed Page rewritten to update the information for registered AIFMs

25/01/2023 : Editorial amendment page updated as part of website refresh

26/05/2021 : Information changed Replacing EuSEF and EuVECA with SEF and RVECA

11/02/2021 : Information added Message: this page will be updated soon

First published: 06/06/2016 Last updated: 13/09/2024 See all updates