Message from the CEO
Changes to the Association’s mission statement
The Annual Conference in Barcelona was a chance to celebrate our 10th anniversary but, appropriately, it was also an occasion at which we made bold plans for the next decade. The outcome of the Annual General Meeting (AGM) saw the approval of two changes to the Association’s mission statement. These were to include other non-listed products such as Separate Accounts and club deals in our work and also to champion the European non-listed industry globally.
Extending the remit to a broader range of products recognises the maturation of the sector and investors’ desire to have choice and flexibility in investment approaches in Europe. This growing list of products will be incorporated into our research, professional standards and public affairs work going forward.
Having the mandate to romote the industry in as well as outside of Europe will help support capital flows into the industry as we can educate the broader industry on our region’s support of transparency and best practice. We will begin this initiative with a training course and member event in New York this month. Both are sold out, indicating there is already appetite to improve knowledge of the European market.
Rethink of IORP
At the end of May, we had some good news from Brussels that the European Commission has moved away from imposing new capital requirements for pension funds under the IORP Directive. There was concern that, like Solvency II, the measure would reduce investors’ appetite for real estate. The Commission will now propose an overhaul of the rules on governance and supervision in the autumn.
INREV has been active in Brussels for the last 18 months and we were one of the voices that put forward arguments against this Directive. Therefore, we are pleased to be able to report back to members that our investment in a dedicated public affairs programme has contributed to a halting move that would materially damage our industry.
It is, of course, not the only regulation planned in Brussels and our public affairs team will ensure there is a flow of information to members about upcoming legislation. They will also continue to build relationships that are enabling us to have a place at the table when it comes to real issues affecting our industry.
