Ireland’s updated ILP legislation: what it means for private debt funds

The long-awaited update to the Investment Limited Partnership (ILP) Bill in Ireland has now passed all stages of the parliamentary process. The new ILP legislation makes Ireland an even more competitive jurisdiction for private investment funds, like private debt, and will likely see not only new business flow into Ireland but also established managers in other jurisdictions move domiciles. The updates to the ILP and AIF Rulebook reflect typical features of close-ended funds. These features will be available to close-ended qualifying investor fund partnerships as well as other available legal structures.

According to the Irish Funds Industry Association, the total assets of Irish-domiciled AIFs stood at €760bn as of October 2020*. This is up from €610bn as at the end of 2018. The expectation is that the new legislation will see further strong growth going forward, with some estimates suggesting assets could grow by 10% in 2021 alone.

What does it mean for private debt managers?

Private debt is expected to the be the strongest growing asset class in 2021 and we believe that the largest direct lending firms with distressed situation capabilities will be well placed to capitalise. A lot of those managers have the benefit of surviving the global financial crisis and offer in-house expertise. Others will be raising new capital in anticipation of upcoming opportunities. The ILP makes Ireland a highly attractive jurisdiction for private debt structures and not only does it offer private flexibility but also cost-efficient solutions. The ILP will allow fund managers to set up and operate multiple funds under one umbrella structure.

How can Intertrust Group help?

Intertrust Group’s in a unique position to service private debt fund structures from Ireland. We have established a large private capital client base in Ireland and across the globe, with a proven track record and strong expertise in helping private investment fund managers in popular fund jurisdictions such as Luxembourg, Cayman, Jersey and Guernsey.

Our proposition gives us the ability to service the ILP structure end-to-end across our full suite of services across loan administration and loan agency services, loan operations and fund finance. We can set up and manage entities at the global portfolio level, such as HoldCo’s or SPVs, through to administration and investor services at the ILP level, with fully customised solutions across virtually every need the GP, LP, or portfolio company may have. We can assist you with your loan operations including stability, scalability and efficiency under our advanced technology capabilities.

To discover more about the ILP and how Intertrust Group can help you accelerate the possible across the full lifecycle of your private debt fund, get in touch with our experts.

* https://www.irishfunds.ie/facts-figures/irish-domiciled-non-ucits