資訊洞見
Following the implementation in December 2013 of legislation updating the Trustee Ordinance, the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) issued a circular on 17 April 2014 to clarify the application of the revised Trustee Ordinance to trustees of SFC-authorised funds constituted as Hong Kong unit trusts.
Section 41O of the Trustee Ordinance provides that a trustee is not liable for any act or omission of an agent, nominee or custodian acting for the trust if the trustee has discharged the statutory duty of care applicable to the trustee imposed under the Trustee Ordinance.
In the circular, the SFC has confirmed that authorised fund trustees are subject to the requirements concerning trustee/custodian liability as set out in the SFC’s Code on Unit Trusts and Mutual Funds, notwithstanding any provisions in the revised Trustee Ordinance. This confirmation is in line with the article on this topic in our newsletter of November 2013.
In order to “put it beyond doubt” that section 41O of the Trustee Ordinance shall not operate to affect the application of the code requirements, the SFC requires that: