AFP – The European Central Bank has warned that European Union plans to regulate hedge funds and private equity groups could tilt the playing field against EU companies.

The ECB’s position could influence the rewriting of proposed rules drafted by the European Commission.

“The ECB supports the intention to provide a harmonised regulatory and supervisory framework for the activities of alternative investment fund managers (AIFMs) in the European Union,” it said in an opinion requested by the Council of the European Union.

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Tags: alternative investment, hedge fund, investment fund managers, Private Equity, supervisory framework

West Palm Beach (HedgeCo.net) – In an effort to makes major changes to the EU financial regulation services, the European Commission (EC) has launched ‘Driving European Recovery’, a consultation  on major structural changes to European financial services and markets regulation.

The EC are looking for investors such as hedge funds and other interested parties to interview and submit comments before April 10th, when the EC intends to publish its proposals on the future of the EU supervisory architecture.

The Commission endorses the key principles set out in the recent de Larosière report and calls for a supervisory system combining stronger oversight at EU level with maintaining a key role for national supervisors.

The Commission will propose an ambitious new reform programme, designed to deliver “responsible and reliable financial markets for the future”.

The reform program will present a supervisory framework that detects potential risks early, deals with them effectively before they have an impact, and meets the challenge of complex international financial markets.

The Commission will present a European financial supervision package before the end of May 2009, according to a statement, fill gaps where European or national regulation is insufficient or incomplete, based on a ‘safety first’ approach and  improve risk management in financial firms and align pay incentives with sustainable performance.

Among other proposals to be revealed in May, the EC will, "Ensure more effective sanctions against market wrongdoing."

Alex Akesson

Tags: accredited-investors, ec, european commission, financial supervision, gaps, hedgeco, international financial markets, key role, other interested parties, oversight, palm-beach, risk management, sanctions, supervisory framework, supervisory system, sustainable performance, wrongdoing