The majority of European hedge fund managers that have set up business in recent years have been in the UK, according to data from Preqin’s hedge fund analyst.
The UK is also the most prominent country in terms of hedge funds being launched in Europe, representing approximately 50% of all known European hedge fund launches in 2013 and 2014.
UK-based hedge fund managers have seen a net increase in assets under management (AUM) of around $57 billion between January 2013 and April 2014, in contrast to hedge fund managers based in France, Spain and Germany that have seen a net decrease in assets over the same time period.
The UK far eclipses other countries in Europe in terms of total hedge fund AUM, with $423 billion, ahead of Sweden ($34 billion), Switzerland ($31 billion), France ($20 billion) and Netherlands ($9 billion).
Amy Bensted, head of hedge funds products for Preqin, commented: “Europe is experiencing a slowdown in terms of new hedge fund managers setting up business in contrast to North America, which has seen an increase in the number of new fund managers coming into market in recent years.”
“This can be partially attributed to the AIFMD regulation within Europe, which is deterring some prospective new firms setting up a hedge fund business in the region.”
“Over the course of the rest of 2014 it will be interesting to see if UK continues to see increasing volumes of new manager launches and if regulation and other hurdles continue to hinder start-ups in the rest of Europe.”
