Europe: private equity and hedge fund regulation

Private equity and hedge funds were the subject of a recent European conference, at which the opening speech was delivered by European Internal Market Commissioner Charlie McCreevy. Mr McCreevy has not been an enthusiastic supporter of greater regulation but he nevertheless observed: "[c]loser, direct regulatory and supervisory oversight of hedge funds and private equity is inevitable ... The Commission is committed to bringing forward an appropriate legislative initiative which I intend to present ... before [the] end [of] April".

With regard to the shape of the new regulatory regime, the European Private Equity and Venture Capital Association has published its response to the European Parliament and Commission. It states:

...the private equity and venture capital industry intends to cooperate very closely with the European Commission and the other EU Institutions in developing an appropriate and proportionate regulatory framework. We believe that this framework should consist of enhanced unified professional standards and an effective enforcement regime with oversight thereof by the appropriate national or European bodies".

Elsewhere, private equity is the focus of the winter 2008 research newsletter published by the European Corporate Governance Institute. The newsletter contains summaries of recent articles on this topic from the ECGI's working paper series as well as interviews with a couple of practitioners and an academic.