13. The Regulation of Alternative Investment Funds in Europe: The Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive

This chapter provides an analysis of the Alternative Investment Fund Manager Directive (AIFMD), which had a strong impact on alternative investment funds, as well as on alternative investment fund managers. The analysis of the AIFMD mainly focuses on the difficulties, especially political challenges, of approving this text. It also tackles the issue of the definition of alternative funds in the context of the AIFMD and its practical consequences, as well as the main provision implementing a direct regulatory approach for alternative investment fund managers in Europe (authorization, information and transparency, organization requirements, leverage). The chapter provides some critical considerations of these aspects adopting an international perspective.