Brian Forrester (pictured), investment partner at Deloitte comments on HM Treasury’s latest Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD) consultation paper…

The position taken by the Treasury in its AIFMD consultation paper goes significantly beyond the minimum rules contained in the Directive for small hedge fund managers. 

While the Treasury does not propose to apply the full Directive to managers of unregulated collective investment schemes, it does propose to apply similar rules to those that are currently applicable to operators of retail investment funds. This will include requiring those firms to appoint a depositary.

A Deloitte survey indicated that small hedge fund managers would be hit hardest by the Directive, with the single biggest increase in ongoing costs caused by the requirement to appoint a depositary. Smaller hedge fund managers will be unhappy having to bear these costs, which the Directive itself requires only of larger fund managers.