Wall Street’s top regulator is seeking to compel hedge funds and private equity groups to disclose quarterly performance and fees charged to investors, as the agency pushes back against activities it warned were “contrary to the public interest”.
The Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday voted in favour of a string of proposed rules that would require annual audits of private funds, ban certain fees that buyout shops charge and prohibit preferential terms for certain investors. The watchdog also advanced a proposal that would accelerate the time it takes for stock and bond trades to be finalised.
Strengthening regulation for private fund advisers is aimed at protecting investors as hedge funds, private equity groups and venture capital funds have amassed more than $18tn in gross assets, the SEC said. Its move comes at a time when big investors such as pension funds and endowments are racing into alternative assets — including real estate and infrastructure — as the outlook for returns in public markets dims.