AMF Enforcement Committee fines the depositary CACEIS Bank for breaches of its professional obligations
Executive Summary
The AMF Enforcement Committee fined CACEIS Bank €3.5 million and issued a warning on 17 December 2025 for breaches of its professional obligations as depositary for seven French-law UCITS funds managed by H2O AM LLP (later transferred to H2O AM Europe). This decision underscores the AMF's strict enforcement of depositary oversight duties, particularly in verifying fund managers' investment monitoring systems, asset valuations, and compliance with prospectus constraints like issuer limits and security ratings. It matters for compliance teams as it highlights personal accountability risks and potential fines for inadequate due diligence in fund depositary roles, signaling heightened scrutiny amid past H2O fund issues. #
What Changed
This is an enforcement action, not a regulatory change; it reinforces existing obligations under French UCITS rules (transposing UCITS Directive V) for depositaries. Key upheld objections include: - Failure to perform sufficient checks on the asset management company's (AMC) systems for monitoring UCITS investment ratios and valuing unlisted securities. - Inadequate verification of investment decision legality, such as compliance with prospectus limits on debt security ratings, derivative types, and the 10% single-issuer bond exposure cap. No new rules were introduced, but the decision clarifies expectations for "sufficient checks" and diligent oversight, with appeals possible against the ruling. #
What You Need To Do
- Conduct gap analysis
- Enhance oversight processes
- Training and audits
- Monitor appeals
Key Dates
Compliance Impact
Urgency: High - This recent (Dec 2025) decision directly impacts depositaries with €3.5M precedent for oversight failures, amid AMF's pattern of multi-million fines (e.g., €5.67M total in related 2024 case involving CACEIS). It elevates risks for UCITS/AIF depositaries handling non-standard assets, demanding immediate control reviews to avoid personal sanctions, warnings, or business restrictions,
Who is Affected
Summary
Sanctions & settlements professional obligations Journalists Investment management companies Listed companies and issuers AMF Enforcement Committee fines the depositary CACEIS Bank for breaches of its professional obligations