New CCIVs and their Corporate Director

The Corporate Director of a CCIV is a new role. The Corporate Director is a public company with an AFSL, authorised to operate a CCIV, while primarily responsible for the new CCIVs obligations, it can appoint an Investment Manager

The Corporate Collective Investment Vehicle Framework and Other Measures Act 2021 (the CCIV Act) inserts a new Chapter 8B into the Corporations Act and makes related amendments to that Act and the ASIC Act which include the appointment of a “Corporate Director”.

Here are some bullet points about this role:

• The director of a CCIV must be a public company with an AFSL authorising it to operate a CCIV
• The Corporate Director for a retail CCIV must itself have at least half of its directors as external directors which is a distinct departure from the MIS regime.
• While the corporate director is primarily responsible to run the CCIV they can appoint an agent like an Investment Manager
• The corporate director of a CCIV is generally responsible for the conduct of the CCIV. This reflects the fact that a CCIV must not have any employees and its only director is the corporate director
• The consequences of contravening a commonwealth criminal offence or civil penalty provision by a CCIV do not apply to the CCIV. 
• The duties and obligations of directors of CCIVs align more closely to those of a responsible entity than to those of a director of another company type.
• The Corporate Director must ensure that the assets are held separately in sub-funds, clearly identified, valued and distributed appropriately. 
• The Corporate Director must ensure the constitution and compliance plan comply with the law
• The Corporate Director must operate in the best interests duty to members, and other duties similar to those of a company director
• The Corporate Director must engage a compliance plan auditor