The European Securities and Markets Authority ("ESMA"), an independent authority established by the European Union ("EU") with the role of safeguarding the stability of its financial system, announced yesterday that some authorities in the EU have decided to impose or extend existing short-selling bans or restrictions in their respective countries due to recent volatility in financial markets:

In the business section of good book shops these days, amongst the get rich quick guides and biographies of celebrity millionaires, there are a large number of paperbacks on the “history” of the financial crisis, an event barely three years in the rear view mirror and in some respects still continuing. These books tell fascinating stories of the small number of people who were on the short (i.e. profitable) side of the credit bubble.  Others focus on the near death of both high street and investment banking “as we know it”.

On 1 July 2011 the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (“AIFMD” or “the Directive”) was published in the Official Journal of the European Union (“EU”). Under EU procedure, the Directive comes “into force” 20 days later, on 21 July 2011.  The deadline for Member States to implement the Directive into national law is 22 July 2013 and firms affected will have a year from then (i.e. 22 July 2014) to secure their necessary authorisation.

On 27^th June 2011, the Financial Services Authority (“FSA”) released an “approach” document outlining how its successor body for conduct and markets regulation, the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”), would be tougher and bolder than the FSA itself when it commences its operations in late 2012 or early 2013.

Non US private fund managers and advisers hoping for favourable amendments to the SECs Dodd Frank implementation proposals will be feeling slightly disappointed. On the 22^nd of June the SEC commissioners voted 3-2 in favour of implementing the Private Fund advisor rules largely as set out in their consultation proposals published November 2010 with very little reasoning or discussion of the potential cross jurisdictional impact of the rules.