Dariusz Adamski wrapped up 20th IZFiA Funds Forum

Dariusz Adamski, Deputy Chair of the KNF, wrapped up the 20th Funds Forum organised by the Chamber of Fund and Asset Management (IZFiA). He outlined the directions of actions and priorities of the UKNF, focusing on supporting the development of the capital market.

He emphasised that the Polish economy needed a complex innovation policy promoting initiatives, such as the Innovate Poland programme. This is impossible without a modern scientific policy, which is still missing. The development of innovation is, however, supported through ongoing legislative changes concerning investment funds. They will increase investment flexibility and create new structures to allow for investments in the private capital market, supporting mainly venture capital and private equity sectors. In the context of expanding modern investment structures, Dariusz Adamski has declared that the supervisor is willing to have dialogue on a broader use of closed-end funds, in particular to finance infrastructural investments.

Yet another strategic challenge is development of savings for retirement purposes. The Deputy Chair of the KNF emphasised that pension products were the foundation of each of the most developed capital markets, while the current level of participation in programmes such as PPK (employee capital plans), IKE (individual retirement account) or IKZE (individual retirement security accounts) remains too low. It is necessary to increase attractiveness of those solutions and overcome political and social reluctance to have a debate on the pension system.

The UKNF is to get involved in the mediation between banks and funds on the development of open architecture for the distribution of financial products. Apart from this, as a result of regulatory changes initiated by the supervisor, financial advisory services will be strengthened. The UKNF acknowledges inadequate knowledge among clients and it wants to create an environment in which the staff of financial institutions could support clients more effectively without crossing the boundaries of investment advisory services. 

He also mentioned education and promotion of the capital market. He said that the sector did not use marketing enough and encouraged representatives of the fund market to be more active in this regard. He emphasised the importance of competitiveness as well as the need to increase market transparency, improve funds' effectiveness and reduce funds’ costs. Those aspects are at the core of UKNF’s work.

The Deputy Chair has announced that the supervisor is willing to speed up licensing processes, including to introduce a fast track for standard cases. The precondition, however, is cooperation on the part of applicants, arrangement of key matters during meetings with the UKNF before an application is filed, and use of standard documentation.