Venture capital funds – recent European developments

Abstract

Purpose

This article aims to trace current developments in the treatment of the venture capital industry in the European Union (EU), including recently proposed legislation.

Design/methodology/approach

This article provides an analysis of current EU venture capital industry trends by detailing some of the important aspects of the newly proposed EU marketing regimes for venture capital and social entrepreneurship funds, noting the impact on venture capital of the UK's discussion paper on AIFMD implementation and examining a recent EU Parliament study on the potential of venture capital in the EU.

Findings

There appears growing recognition in the EU that the venture capital industry requires specialist legislation that balances the compliance burden with a constructive facility for marketing venture capital funds cross‐border.

Originality/value

This article provides an expert view of recent European trends in the venture capital industry by specialist lawyers.

Citation

McGowan, P. and Everitt, K. (2012), "Venture capital funds – recent European developments", Journal of Investment Compliance, Vol. 13 No. 2, pp. 57-59. https://doi.org/10.1108/15285811211238174