Читать книгу Alternative Investments - Hossein Kazemi - Страница 32

Regulation of investments is motivated by concern for the participants directly involved as well as by concern for the overall economy. Privately organized investment vehicles, such as hedge funds, have generally received reduced regulatory scrutiny because the participants involved tend to be sophisticated institutions or individuals perceived to be less in need of regulatory protection than the general public.

Especially since the financial crisis that began in 2007, regulators throughout the world have become increasingly concerned about the role of hedge funds and other investment vehicles in exacerbating systemic risk. Systemic risk is the potential for economy-wide losses attributable to failures or concerns over potential failures in financial markets, financial institutions, or major participants. For example, the collapse of a very large hedge fund may lead to a sequence of collapses and failures that disrupt the financial system and cause widespread economic losses, not so much from the direct asset losses of the collapse as from the inability of the other market participants to trade and manage risks due to the uncertainty that is generated. Regulators are concerned that very large investment funds, such as some hedge funds, or highly complex alternative investment products, such as collateralized debt obligations (CDOs), may increase systemic risk.