Alternative Directive Delayed

Alternative Directive Delayed

European Union's Alternative Funds Directive Delayed

Hedge funds may have avoided the European Union's chopping block until as late as this summer.  EU finance ministers have put off their big decision on regulating the financial industry.  UK politicians, especially from London, have recently voiced concerns over the Alternative Investment Funds Directive.  The regulations could have important consequences on the hedge fund industry.
European Union finance ministers delayed a decision on new rules for hedge funds Tuesday in a reprieve for Britain, which fears that onerous regulations could drive the industry from London.

The Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive would have required funds based outside the 27-member European Union to ask permission from individual European countries to market themselves to investors rather than being able to treat the bloc as a single market.

The rules also would require hedge funds, private equity groups and others to register and disclose trading information to supervisors.

Regulators and lawmakers worldwide are tightening their scrutiny of hedge funds and private equity firms on the grounds that they may have been partly to blame for the worst financial crisis in a generation. Many in Europe also see the industry as too opaque and secretive. Source


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