London hedge funds call for change in European Law

London hedge funds are today campaigning against the European Union's Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive which they believe could lead to thousands of job losses in the City of London. Since being introduced some months ago the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive has undergone a record 1,200 amendments which it is believed will impact enormously upon the UK financial sector.

Many hedge fund managers are already openly discussing potentially relocating to countries such as Switzerland to escape the clutches of this new directive. It would appear that many in the European Commission do not have a full understanding of the impact these changes will have and appear determined to quash the power of the London financial markets. However, they seem to forget that while the UK is not as active a member of the EU as others, having not adopted the euro, it is still a part of Europe and attracts massive financial business to the region.

The new directive will not only increase the cost of operating in the UK financial markets but will also bring in other areas of business which have so far escaped the clutches of the European Commission. Slowly but surely the European Commission is extending across the whole of Europe and invading previously untouched areas of local economies.