New SKAGEN account

SKAGEN has until now registered its funds with the Norwegian Central Securities Depository (VPS), and used their solutions for unit holder registration and fund settlement. SKAGEN has now chosen to develop its own solution in order to provide a flexible technical service for our clients in Norway and abroad. This means that your fund units will be transferred from your VPS account to a newly established SKAGEN account. 

How will the change affect you?

• You will not have to do anything - your fund units in SKAGEN will be transferred from your VPS account to a new SKAGEN account.
• A personal electronic mail box will be set up for you on My Page.
• Notifications of change, realisation statements and annual statements that were formerly sent by VPS will in future be sent to your electronic mail box by SKAGEN. If you wish to receive these documents by post, please contact Customer Services.
• Your rights as a unit holder in SKAGEN are governed by the Norwegian Securities Funds Act, and not by the Securities Register Act that regulates VPS’ operations.

You will receive a letter from SKAGEN once your fund units have been transferred. VPS will also send you a notification of change to confirm that your units have been transferred out of VPS. You will at all times be able to track your units on My Page.

Frequently asked questions and answers

Will the transfer have any tax implications or will we incur any other costs?
No, there will be no tax implications for you as a client related to the transfer of fund units and you will not incur any other costs. The cost of developing and operating SKAGEN’s unit holder register and fund settlement solution will be covered by SKAGEN.

Will the funds be unavailable for trade during the transfer?
The transfer will take place over a bank holiday weekend, so it should not affect the purchase and sale of fund units. Once the transfer has been completed, you will be able to buy and sell fund units as usual.

We have redeemed our fund units. Will we still get a new SKAGEN account?
If there have been no fund units in your VPS account for over a year, a new SKAGEN account will not be established for you. You may easily open a new account yourself free of charge.

We have SKAGEN units in several VPS accounts. What will happen to them?
A new account will be opened for each and every VPS account in which SKAGEN units are registered. If you, for example, have units in SKAGEN’s funds in three different VPS accounts, these units will be transferred to three new accounts.

Will our account history be transferred to SKAGEN’s new solution?
Yes, all historical transactions will be transferred to your new account.

How do we obtain access to new change notices and annual and realisation statements?
A new personal electronic mailbox will be set up for you on My Page where SKAGEN will send new transaction receipts (including annual statements and realisation statements). You can register your email address on My Page under “Profile”, or by contacting us by phone on +47 51 80 37 09 or by sending us an email. Unit holders may request that annual and realisation statements be sent to them by post.

How do we obtain access to SKAGEN units registered in our child’s or company name?
If you have set up an account on behalf of a minor and/or a company, this will be transferred to a new account. If you require access for a minor and/or a company, please send the completed relevant form to contact@skagenfunds.com. We will then establish access to the relevant account which will provide an overview of fund units, change notices as well as annual and realisation statements.

How are our fund units secured in the new unit holder register?
It is not uncommon either in Norway or in Europe for fund management companies to have their own solution for unit holder registration and fund settlement. Handelsbanken will continue to act as custodian for SKAGEN’s funds.

How are my legal rights affected?
SKAGEN’s decision to stop using VPS’ services does not impact your legal rights as a unit holder in SKAGEN’s funds. As a unit holder you are protected by the Norwegian Securities Funds Act. All of SKAGEN’s funds are established with the approval of the Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway (Finanstilsynet) and the management company SKAGEN AS has approval from the Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway (Finanstilsynet) to carry out the regulated activity of fund management.

We are legally obliged to keep a register of each unit holder, including number of units amongst other things. Each fund has a depository account with the funds’ custodian, Handelsbanken, and SKAGEN is subject to internal and external audits as well as internal control requirements. The Norwegian Securities Funds Act also ensures that we act in accordance with statutory requirements, including with regard to data protection.

The change means that the unit holder register in SKAGEN will henceforth no longer be regulated by the Securities Register Act which regulates VPS’ activities. Your rights as a unit holder in SKAGEN will continue to be regulated by the Norwegian Securities Funds Act. Accordingly there will be a change in how legal protection for collateral is established. Legal protection relates to regulations about how protection versus a third party shall be obtained, in other words what security is established. In a securities register, legal protection is established by registration in the securities register. When it comes to the rights registered in a unit holder register held by a fund management company the security is established by notice of the right to the management company. New routines will be established in connection with SKAGEN terminating its cooperation with VPS. It is important to note that established collateral will automatically continue after the VPS exit.

If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us by phone on +47 51 80 37 09 or by sending us an email