Thu, Apr 25, 2024
A A A
Welcome Guest
Free Trial RSS pod
Get FREE trial access to our award winning publications
Industry Updates

Preqin: Only 15% of US hedge fund managers are now AIFMD compliant

Tuesday, July 21, 2015
Opalesque Industry Update - Preqin’s latest survey of global hedge fund managers reveals that most UK- and Europe-based hedge fund managers are AIFMD-compliant. By contrast, there has been slow uptake among firms beyond the EU’s borders; a quarter of hedge fund managers based across Asia and Rest of World currently comply, and only 15% of firms based in the US. A large proportion (42%) of fund managers based outside the EU do not plan to raise capital from EU investors in the near future; of this group, 59% are avoiding the region due to concerns about the AIFMD. Many managers based outside the EU are relying on investors to approach them through reverse solicitation. Even so, 38% of US managers have chosen to avoid the EU completely, with most citing compliance costs and the risks arising from uncertainty and lack of guidance surrounding the directive.

Other Key Hedge Fund AIFMD Stats:

  • Drop in Negative Attitudes: The negativity surrounding the AIFMD has reduced over the past six months, with 45% of respondents to Preqin’s June 2015 survey believing the Directive will change the hedge fund landscape for the worse, compared to 58% as of December 2014.

  • Split Views in the EU: Despite the majority of UK firms being compliant, not a single UK hedge fund manager surveyed expected the AIFMD to have a positive impact on their firm in the coming year. This compares to 55% of non-UK EU hedge funds that believe it will have a positive impact.

  • Compliance Rates: Only 15% of US hedge fund managers, and a quarter of firms across Asia and Rest of World, are currently compliant with the AIFMD. This compares with almost all (90%) of UK-based firms, and 82% of fund managers across the rest of Europe.

  • Costs of Compliance: Two-thirds of firms globally reported that the costs of complying with the AIFMD are higher than expected. No fund managers reported the costs as lower than expected.

  • Size Matters: The largest fund managers are more likely to be compliant with the AIFMD regulation; 46% of fund managers with more than $1bn in AUM are compliant, compared to 19% of those with less than $100mn. Forty percent of firms with less than $100mn in AUM will not be marketing a fund within the EU at all.

Comment:

“As we approach the 22nd July anniversary of its implementation, the AIFMD has had a varied effect on the hedge fund industry. While general negativity towards the regulation has fallen over the past six months, 45% of fund managers still believe the AIFMD will change the industry for the worse, and only 23% feel it will have a positive impact. Although in Europe most hedge funds are AIFMD-compliant, only a relatively small number of fund managers from beyond the EU’s borders have acquired compliance status. Despite having one of the highest levels of compliance (90%), not a single UK-based fund manager felt the directive will have a positive impact on their business.

Many non-EU fund managers are choosing to avoid investment from the region completely, which may result in a reduced choice of funds available for investment for EU-based investors. The leading concern hedge fund managers have about the new regulation is the increased costs of complying with the EU directive, with two thirds of those managers that have acquired the passport stating the costs have been higher than they originally expected.”

Amy Bensted – Head of Hedge Fund Products, Preqin

Press Release

What do you think?

   Use "anonymous" as my name    |   Alert me via email on new comments   |   
Previous Opalesque Exclusives                                  
Previous Other Voices                                               
Access Alternative Market Briefing

 



  • Top Forwarded
  • Top Tracked
  • Top Searched
  1. KKR raises $6.4bn for the largest pan-Asia infrastructure fund[more]

    Laxman Pai, Opalesque Asia: The New York-based global investment firm KKR has raised a record $6.4bn for its second Asia-focused infrastructure fund, underlining investors' continued appetite for private markets. According to a media release from the alternative assets manager, the figure top

  2. Bucking the trend, top hedge fund makes plans for a second SPAC[more]

    From Institutional Investor: SPACs aren't dead. At least not to the folks at Cormorant Asset Management. The life sciences firm, whose hedge fund topped its peers in 2023, is confident it will match the success of its first blank-check company. Last week, the life sciences and biopharma speciali

  3. Benefit Street Partners closes fifth fund on $4.7 billion[more]

    Bailey McCann, Opalesque New York: Benefit Street Partners has closed its fifth flagship direct lending vehicle, BSP Debt Fund V, with $4.7 billion of investable capital across the strategy. Benefit Street invests primarily in privately originated, floating rate, senior secured loans. The fun

  4. 4 hedge fund themes that are working in 2024[more]

    From The Street: A poor earnings report from Tesla (TSLA) has not hurt the indexes on Thursday. The decline in Tesla stock, which is losing its position in the Magnificent Seven pantheon, is more than offset by strong earnings from IBM (IBM) and ServiceNow (NOW) . In addition, the much higher-t

  5. Opalesque Exclusive: A global macro fund eyes opportunities in bonds[more]

    Bailey McCann, Opalesque New York for New Managers: Munich-based ThirdYear Capital rebounded in 2023, following a tough year for global macro. The firm's flagship ART Global Macro strategy finished the year up 1