The European Fund Management Industry Needs a Better Grasp of Non-financial Risks

The increase of non-financial risks in investment funds is the result above all of the growing sophistication of the transactions and financial instruments of investment funds, of the pursuit of non-traditional risk premia, as well as of such regulatory actions as the passage of the eligible assets directive (EAD) and the improved possibilities for leverage in sophisticated UCITS. In addition, inappropriate regulatory certification contributed to the sale of bad products, to misrepresentation of these products, and to increasing risk. Country competition in the implementation of EU regulations and possibly in supervisory practices also had an impact.