British diplomats will today begin the final stage of a desperate rearguard action against new European legislation that London-based hedge funds and private equity firms warn could drive them out of business. While Britain has been fighting for some time for a significant watering down of the reforms proposed by the Alternative Investment Fund Management (AIFM) directive, time is running out to secure concessions on behalf of the City, where much of Europe's hedge fund and private equity sector is based. A source close to the talks warned "the UK is not going to get everything it wants". Britain has spent much of the weekend trying to win the support of smaller European countries. This Wednesday, the directive will move to the European Commission's Committee of Permanent Representatives for consideration. Britain's representative, the diplomat Kim Darroch, will have a final chance to persuade colleagues that amendments are necessary, but only small changes will be possible.
While Britain has been fighting for some time for a significant watering down of the reforms proposed by the Alternative Investment Fund Management (AIFM) directive, time is running out to secure concessions on behalf of the City, where much of Europe's hedge fund and private equity sector is based. A source close to the talks warned "the UK is not going to get everything it wants".
Britain has spent much of the weekend trying to win the support of smaller European countries. This Wednesday, the directive will move to the European Commission's Committee of Permanent Representatives for consideration. Britain's representative, the diplomat Kim Darroch, will have a final chance to persuade colleagues that amendments are necessary, but only small changes will be possible.
Proposed regulation in Europe would add a lot of restrictions to raising capital on the continent, but it is questionable if it will go through as planned, a senior executive at private equity giant Blackstone Group (BX.N) said on Tuesday. The industry is facing regulation in Europe that would require greater disclosure by private equity, and could restrict firms based outside the European Union which want to raise money from European investors. "It puts a lot of restrictions on your ability to raise capital in Europe if you're not a Europe-domiciled business; which is sort of restrictive to trade," said Garrett Moran, chief operating officer of Blackstone's private equity unit, at the Reuters Private Equity and Hedge Funds Summit.
The industry is facing regulation in Europe that would require greater disclosure by private equity, and could restrict firms based outside the European Union which want to raise money from European investors.
"It puts a lot of restrictions on your ability to raise capital in Europe if you're not a Europe-domiciled business; which is sort of restrictive to trade," said Garrett Moran, chief operating officer of Blackstone's private equity unit, at the Reuters Private Equity and Hedge Funds Summit.
