EU Directive
The European Union Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD) has provided investors and fund managers with a highly efficient mechanism for creating and promoting investment products. Unlike collective investment funds, alternative investment funds can only invest in one asset or in a small number of assets and are therefore considered as alternative investment funds within the meaning of the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive
Specification
By acquisition of investment passport in one of the EU member states, a small alternative fund obtaining the right to operate throughout the entire European Union. Typically, these funds are hedge funds; capital construction funds; real estate funds; digital assets funds; private investment and other alternative types of investment
Favorable hubs
There are several favorable hubs in the EU for registering an alternative investment fund: Estonia, Luxembourg, Malta, Ireland and the Netherlands. Each jurisdiction has its own characteristics and advantages despite that local regulations are based on the generally accepted EU Directive. In order to select the right jurisdiction, AIF founders have to conduct a preliminary analysis or receive a full legal opinion that will consider individual features. In 2017, Luxembourg has been registered 14,000 Funds (including sub-funds) with 4 trillion EUR under management, while Ireland had approximately 7,500 funds including 2,200 AIFs managing over 2 trillion EUR