Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., today introduced legislation that would require hedge funds with more than 15 investors to register with the SEC. The bill, which would also allow the SEC to monitor hedge fund activity, was introduced less than a week after a federal appeals court threw out an SEC regulation requiring hedge fund registration.
"Given the increasing size of hedge funds and the growing role they are playing in the economy, it would be a grave error to allow the court decision denying any authority by the SEC to stand," Mr. Frank said in a statement. "At the very least, Congress should give the SEC the power it has sought to require registration, and we should also be looking into whether any further SEC or regulatory authority regarding hedge funds is needed."
Mr. Frank, the ranking minority member on the House Financial Services Committee, also called for committee hearings to examine the hedge fund industry "and any need for additional oversight and regulation."
