The Association for Investment Management and Research (AIMR), a Charlottesville, Va.-based non-profit trade group, has released a proposed set of soft-dollar standards for its buy-side members.
The standards, developed by a blue-ribbon task force of industry leaders convened by the trade group, are open to public comment until Feb. 28.
Understanding
These standards include the creation of a common understanding of soft-dollar issues by providing definitions of major terms; and requirements that the content of research purchased with client brokerage directly assist an investment manager in his decision-making processing, and not in the management of the firm.
Also included in the standards are a clarification of an investment manager's responsibility to justify the use of client knowledge to pay for a portion of mixed-use products.
Disclose
The standards require AIMR members to disclose certain information with regard to soft dollar practices; uniform record keeping; and clarification of an investment manager's real and fiduciary responsibilities to his client, including the client-directed brokerage area.
These responsibilities cover the client-directed brokerage area.
