Minister hopeful on EU fund reforms

British officials are confident that they can make changes to new EU proposals for hedge funds and other investment companies.

City minister Lord Myners told a House of Lords committee that the UK was ’gaining traction’ in preventing the plans from imposing overly tough regulations on the funds.

Investment professionals have previously expressed concern over the EU draft directive, which contains plans for stringent new regulations for the sector.

Lord Myners suggested that, if adopted, these proposals would lead to a migration of investors’ money out of the UK and Europe and into territories with a looser regulatory regime, including Singapore and Switzerland.

’I am confident that the directive will be significantly improved. The arguments we are putting forward are being taken into account in Brussels. We are gaining traction,’ he said.

’Hedge funds and private equity groups should be working hard in getting their customers lobbying Europe on the value they get out of alternative investing.’ADNFCR-2318-ID-19266463-ADNFCR