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New AIFM Directive proposals welcomed by AIC


The Association of Investment Companies (AIC) has welcomed the Swedish Presidency’s new proposals for the EU’s controversial Alternative Investment Fund Managers (AIFM) Directive.

Many industry figures are opposed to the directive, which would significantly increase compliance costs for hedge fund managers and private equity firms, in its current form.

Sweden currently holds the rotating EU presidency and has published a series of new recommendations, which include withdrawing the limit on the amount that hedge funds can borrow for investments.

Commenting on the paper, the AIC’s acting director general Ian Sayers said he was pleased that ’policymakers are seeking to get to grips with critical issues’ surrounding the directive.

In response to the proposals put forward by the Swedish Presidency, he added: ’Notably they raise the possibility of the company itself taking responsibility for compliance with the directive. We would welcome this approach.’

Speaking in Brussels last week, business secretary Peter Mandelson warned that the restrictions implied in the directive could harm future investment in the UK, where many hedge funds are based.
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