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Andrew Baker, AIMA CEO, said, “There are provisions in this directive with potentially serious consequences for managers, investors, service providers and advisers internationally. As the global trade body for the industry it is right therefore that AIMA takes the lead in mobilising resources in order to secure the best possible outcome for the industry on the directive.

The feedback we’re getting from our members, who manage more than 75% of hedge fund industry assets globally, is that the draft directive has created enormous confusion. Because of the lack of proper consultation the directive presumes a structure for the industry which bears little relationship to reality. Implementation in its current form could prove to be unworkable. It also appears to be in conflict with much of existing EC financial services legislation.

We will therefore call for urgent effort to be devoted to re-drafting this directive. And we will seek to have excluded those provisions which are the most damaging and to prevent those who wish to make the directive even more punitive from prevailing.

To achieve this, AIMA will be announcing a series of initiatives to mobilise the industry. We will not oppose everything in the directive; some of the provisions, such as manager authorisation and registration, are already supported by us and measures which increase transparency to assist the authorities in the understanding of systemic risk issues are to be welcomed.

We want to work with the Commission, EU governments and the European Parliament on this. We are not opposed to the directive per se, we just want the final directive to be practical and realistic.”

About AIMA
As the only truly representative global hedge fund association, AIMA, the Alternative Investment Management Association, has more than 1,100 corporate members worldwide, based in 40 countries.

Members include leading hedge fund managers, fund of hedge funds managers, prime brokers, legal and accounting firms and fund administrators. They all benefit from AIMA’s active influence in policy development, its leadership in industry initiatives, including education and sound practice manuals and its excellent reputation with regulators worldwide.

AIMA is a dynamic organisation that reflects its members’ interests and provides them with a vibrant global network. AIMA is committed to developing industry skills and education standards and is a co-founder of the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst designation (CAIA) – the industry’s first and only specialised educational standard for alternative investment specialists. For further information, please visit AIMA’s website, www.aima.org.