This message should come as a relief for the industry which appears broadly to favour keeping the text as it is. The Luxembourg regulator CSSF is also wary about how the text might be remade. Nevertheless Bassi then went on to give a list of areas which he considers could benefit from “targeted improvements and clarification”.

He said the lack of a depository passport can result in the development of national markets in certain member states, “leading to concentration risk, and a lack of choice for managers.” He recognises that this is a difficult issue that has been long-discussed, but he sees an opportunity for improvement.

“The covid crisis demonstrated there are significant differences across members states regarding the availability and application of liquidity management tools,” he said. Although this did not result in any significant problems, he still sees room for improvement and further harmonisation. “Let’s say it’s an additional guarantee for financial stability in general,” he said.

Reporting is in line to be revamped. “Regulators have had concerns about potential data gaps in AIFMD reporting and reporting overlaps with other regulatory reporting requirements,” Bassi said.

Another area where “clarification” is being sort is on the operation of central securities depositories when carrying out tasks outside of their primary function. He also drew attention to how AIFs are the only major category of funds that can originate loans. “An EU level framework for these funds could facilitate the scaling up of this market and enhance their role as a source of funding for the real economy,” he said.