“It’s now or never for the leaders of the world’s biggest economies to make the changes that will support their claims to have learnt the lessons of the financial and economic crises. Oooh aye? “Strict and consistent measures must be put in place to regulate financial markets, particularly in regard to hedge and private equity funds. Private equity

Sweden, the new holder of the EU presidency, came to the defence of hedge funds and private equity, saying it did not blame them for the financial crisis and would press for improvements in EU proposals to regulate them

The European Commission's draft directive on hedge funds and private equity funds can and will be improved, according to the UK's financial services minister

By supporting tighter regulation on hedge funds and private equity on 10 September, the European Parliament's Economic Committee may have signalled the end of an era for the financial sector. Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, president of the Party of European Socialists, told EurActiv why he thinks events have taken a new turn.

By supporting tighter regulation on hedge funds and private equity last week, the European Parliament's Economic Committee may have signalled the end of an era for the financial sector. Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, president of the Party of European Socialists, tells EurActiv why he thinks events have taken a new turn.

European Commission president Jose-Manuel Barroso has said that the financial crisis means that new regulation will be required and that 'no financial player should be exempt'

The Spanish EU Presidency is aiming to close an agreement on the draft hedge and private equity funds directive at a meeting of finance ministers in Brussels tomorrow (16 March), with teething problems on foreign fund treatment threatening to derail a deal. 

European laws to regulate hedge funds and private equity funds for the first time should be subject to a full impact assessment, a UK treasury minister says

European Commission proposals to regulate alternative investment funds discriminate against private equity and favour direct competitors like sovereign wealth funds or maverick businessmen, Javier Echarri, secretary-general of the European Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (EVCA), told EurActiv in an interview.

Private equity funds appear to have won a big political battle after EU officials unveiled their final proposals to regulate "alternative investment funds" in Europe for the first time