AIMA

20 June 2008

London, 20 June 2008: The Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA), the leading global representative association for the hedge fund industry, has registered its concern with the Financial Services Authority (FSA) over the reasons, timing and method of its announcement of new provisions in the Code of Market Conduct Provisions on Short-Selling, announced by the FSA last week.

Specifically, AIMA sought a delay to the implementation of the regime - which came into force at midnight last night - to facilitate compliance, due to the significant impact of the provisions on some of its members.

AIMA queried the justification for the invocation of special powers of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, which enabled the FSA to take this measure without consultation. In addition, the hedge fund industry body presented to the FSA an extensive set of queries on technical issues.

The FSA has not delayed implementation of the regime, thus AIMA is now in consultation with its membership as to the options available to them to best address the FSA’s regulatory framework for short-selling.

In the meantime, AIMA has requested from the FSA as soon as possible the specific findings of any investigations that have led to this unprecedented event as well as clarification on the many issues outstanding on the definitions, scope and implementation of the regime.

– Ends –

For further information, please contact:

Evan DeBarra (Hume Brophy)
Senior Account Manager
T: +44 (0)20 7499 8736
M: +44 (0)79 4642 2216
E: evan.debarra@humebrophy.com

Editors’ Notes:

1. About AIMA

As the only truly representative global hedge fund association, AIMA, the Alternative Investment Management Association, has 1,280 corporate members worldwide, based in 49 countries.

Members include leading hedge fund managers, fund of hedge funds managers, prime brokers, legal and accounting services and fund administrators.  They all benefit from AIMA’s active influence in policy development, its leadership in industry initiatives, including education and sound practice manuals and its excellent reputation with regulators, worldwide.

AIMA is a dynamic organisation that reflects its membership’s interests and provides them with a vibrant global network.

AIMA is committed to developing industry skills and education standards and is a co-founder of the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst designation (CAIA) – the industry’s first and only specialised educational standard for alternative investment specialists. For further information, please visit AIMA’s website www.aima.org
 

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