Mikheil Shengelia

We recently hosted our annual alternative data conference in London and invited two legal experts to discuss the compliance and regulatory developments related to alternative data in the UK and Europe versus the US.  The following article highlights the key takeaways from this discussion. Sonalini de Zoysa Gunasekera, Legal Counsel at Systematica Investments, and Anna Maleva-Otto, Partner at Schulte Roth + Zabel LLP joined to discuss the complexities surrounding the current state of alternative data compliance and regulation happening in Europe and the UK as opposed to the US. The panelists covered a wide array of topics, including adequate due diligence, material non-public information (MNPI) nuances, regulatory focus in different jurisdictions, technological advancements, and the increased risks related to using alternative datasets.

As asset managers invest resources into building out alternative data initiatives, data sourcing is seen as an integral part of the process, with in-house and outsourced professionals finding and introducing datasets and data vendors. With datasets rapidly growing in price and impacting the growth in spending of firms buying alternative data, the data sourcing function is now more critical than ever before. These results are based on our first-of-its-kind survey of 24 buyside funds with varying levels of alternative data experience.