CFM has established a remuneration policy to promote good business practice and sound and effective risk management (including systemic integrity and sustainability risk management). This remuneration policy complies with the requirements and principles set out in, Schedule 2 to the European Union (Alternative Investment Fund Managers) Regulations 2013, as amended (S.I. No. 257 of 2013) (the “AIFMD Regulations”) and ESMA’s guidelines on sound remuneration policies under the AIFMD, ESMA/2016/411 (the “Remuneration Guidelines”).
The remuneration policy applies to all CFM Staff, including Identified Staff ie those staff whose professional activities have a material impact on CFM’s risk profile or the risk profiles of the Funds that CFM manages. Identified Staff includes senior management, risk takers, control functions and any employees receiving total remuneration that takes them into the same remuneration bracket as senior management and risk takers.
The remuneration policy is consistent with, and seeks to promote, sound and effective risk management (including environmental, social and governance (ESG) sustainability risk management and systemic integrity risk management) and not to encourage risk-taking which is inconsistent with CFM’s risk profile or the risk profiles of the Funds that CFM manages. The policy includes measures to mitigate conflicts of interest and is aligned with CFM’s business strategy, objectives, values and long-term interests.
CFM’s Supervisory Board (CFM SB) is responsible for setting the policy and reviews it annually. The Remuneration and Nomination Committee (CFM RemCo), as a subcommittee of the CFM SB, is responsible for overseeing the implementation of the remuneration policy in accordance with its principles, the adopted processes and its compliance with laws and regulations. Both the CFM SB and the CFM RemCo are composed entirely of non-executive directors and its members do not receive any remuneration from CFM.
For the purposes of the remuneration policy, remuneration consists of all forms of payments or benefits paid by in exchange for professional services provided by CFM rendered by CFM Staff (including Identified Staff).
All remuneration is categorized as either:
- Fixed remuneration: generally paid without consideration of any performance criteria (e.g. salary, fixed pension contributions, contractual benefits in kind etc.); and
- Variable remuneration: additional payments or benefits paid based on performance (with at least 50% based on non-financial criteria).
- Short Term Incentive Awards (“STIA”) are paid from Recurring Profits (i.e. “business as usual” net income), defined as PBT excluding Tier 2B receipts, by means of an enhanced Performance Appraisal process and a hybrid STIA methodology.
- From time to time, CFM will earn investment return in respect of its “GP investments” defined as Non-recurring Profits. This investment return will be allocated between CFM Staff and CFM Members as a Long Term Incentive Award(“LTIA”). In case of Identified Staff, the value of the LTIA allocated will represent at minimum 50% of the total variable remuneration.
Settlement of variable remuneration to Identified Staff are staggered over a number of years to align the personal objectives of CFM Staff with the long-term interests of the CFM Funds. Variable remuneration is settled as follows:
- Annual STIA at or below 75% of annual Total Cost to Company (in that year) is settled in cash on or about the STIA award date while the remainder is subject to 100% deferral, to be released in 3 equal instalments at the 12th, 24thand 36th month anniversary of the date of the relevant STIA award.
- For Identified Staff, a deferral of 40% of the total variable remuneration allocation is applied, however if total net (post tax) variable remuneration component is three times the annual Total Cost to Company, a deferral of 60% will be applied.
- Amounts deferred are subject to appropriate risk-adjustment mechanisms and shall not accrue interest.
CFM is committed to ensuring that any severance pay will be related to performance achieved over time and designed in a way that does not reward failure. Accordingly “Golden parachute” arrangements for staff members leaving CFM and termination payments in situations such as early termination of the contract due to changes in the strategy of CFM or the Funds it manages, or in merger and/or takeover situations will at all times be determined in line with this principle and further with the approval of CFM’s general governance board.