Edition 6.0 of the Code of Practice includes extensive textual changes as well as the implementation of a new Comply or Explain procedure.

The European Life Settlement Association (ELSA) is pleased to announce the release of the latest version of its Code of Practice.

The Code of Practice can be accessed from the ELSA website or by contacting ELSA’s Executive Director, Chris Wells, at Chris@elsa-sls.org.

ELSA published its first Code of Practice in July 2010 and it has undergone a number of revisions since. The code creates a robust framework for how life settlement market participants should conduct their business. This sixth edition provides revised and updated practices relating to all aspects of the design, management and distribution of life settlement products.

Throughout 2020, ELSA consulted with the industry on revisions to the previous edition of the code. The feedback received was invaluable in the code’s development, involving revisions to the three main sections – Product Design, Disclosure & Reporting and Sales & Marketing – as well as the addition of a new Member Conduct section.

This latest revision also incorporates a new ‘Comply or Explain’ procedure. This allows members, in exceptional circumstances, to request an exception from one or more practices from ELSA’s Membership Committee.  If granted, the member must prepare a disclosure statement. This statement must be made available to all its existing and prospective investors on request and alongside the code when shared.

“ELSA’s Code of Practice has set the benchmark for investment standards in the life settlement market for more than a decade,” said Simon Erritt, Chair of the Code of Practice Committee and Managing Director of Coventry Capital. “This latest edition is the result of continuous refinement over that time, mirroring the maturing and increasingly institutional nature of the market itself.”

“Developed with input from actors from all sectors – investment managers, accountants, life expectancy underwriters, attorneys, and life settlement providers – edition 6.0 of the Code refines its standards to reflect current developments in the life settlements industry,” said Philip Siller, a member of ELSA’s Code of Practice Committee and Co-CEO & founding Principal of BroadRiver Asset Management, L.P. As a result, investors and practitioners will find greater clarity, uniformity and protection when transacting with ELSA members.”