Section 7-1-313. Collective investment funds

   (a) As used in this Code section, the term "collective investment fund" shall include a common trust fund and any other type of collective investment fund.

(b) A trust company may establish and maintain collective investment funds for the investment or reinvestment of property which:

   (1) Is contributed by the trust company in a capacity in which it is authorized to act pursuant to Code Section 7-1-310; and

   (2) Is eligible for contribution to a collective investment fund under this Code section.

(c) Property shall be eligible for contribution whenever the instrument, judgment, decree, or order under which the trust company holds the property does not prohibit investment in the type of collective investment fund involved, provided that, if the trust company holds the property under circumstances limiting it to investing the property in legal investments for fiduciaries, then it may invest the property only in a collective investment fund limited to assets authorized as legal investments for a fiduciary.

(d) The department shall regulate the establishment, operation, and maintenance of collective investment funds. Such regulations of the department shall comply with the general standards for exercise of the regulatory power of the department under this chapter and, in addition, shall be designed to assure:

   (1) Ratably equal treatment of the participants in a fund by imposing minimum requirements for the method and frequency of valuation of participations in the fund, for the time and method of admission or withdrawals of participations in the fund, and for the determination of interests of participants in the assets and income of the fund; and

   (2) The competitive equality between trust companies and national banks exercising fiduciary powers with respect to the authority to establish and maintain collective investment funds to the extent compatible with the general purposes of this chapter.

(e) No mistake made in good faith and in the exercise of due care in connection with the administration of a collective investment fund shall be deemed a violation of this Code section or of any other duty of the trust company if, promptly after discovery of the mistake, the trust company takes whatever action may be practicable in the circumstances to remedy the mistake.

(f) Any other trust company or national bank with trust powers which is a member of an affiliated group (as defined in Section 1504 of the Internal Revenue Code) with a trust company maintaining collective investment funds may participate in one or more such funds as though they were maintained by the participating trust company. Such participation may be made pursuant to agreement providing for reasonable compensation for the trust company maintaining the fund or funds.

(g) A trust company, in any capacity in which it may act under Code Section 7-1-310, may invest property collectively in accordance with the specific terms upon which it receives such property, without regard to the restrictions of this Code section.

Ga. L. 1943, p. 442, §§ 2, 3, 6, 8, 13, 14; Ga. L. 1972, p. 816, §§ 2, 3; Code 1933, § 41A-1404, enacted by Ga. L. 1974, p. 705, § 1; Ga. L. 1987, p. 191, § 9.