The Alternative Investment Management Association has called the UK treasury's White Paper on reforming financial markets which contains a short section on the hedge fund industry section as helpful in terms of tone and content. The bulk of the paper concerns reforming regulation of the UK banking system.

"We agree that enhanced disclosure requirements for hedge fund managers are desirable in the interests of gathering systemically relevant information to establish systemic risks," commented Andrew Baker, CEO of AIMA.

Baker said the organisation is working with the government and the Financial Services Authority on the "system of enhanced surveillance that can gather relevant and timely information" that the White Paper outlines.

Also responding to the treasury's White Paper, Richard Saunders, chief executive of Investment Management Association (IMA), said most of the objectives "are laudable, but there are still lots of details to be worked through, whether on the operation of the financial stability council or capital buffers at banks".

IMA is the trade body for the UK's £3.4 trillion asset management industry. The money its members manage is in a wide variety of investment vehicles including authorised investment funds, pension funds and stocks and shares ISAs.