FOI and private equity

Posted by Martin Stabe on 7 February 2006 at 10:04
Tags: Financial Times, Freedom of Information, International

BusinessWeek has a story about traditionally secretive private equity firms’ concerns about the FOI law in the US state of Ohio. Financial journalists and researchers are using the law to investigate the private equity holdings of public-sector pension funds. If the pension funds decide to release their data, many private equity funds may stop working with public sector clients to avoid further disclosures.
The issue is not unique to the United States. About a year ago, when Britain’s FOIA came into force, the Financial Times reported a similar conflict brewing in the City. This is an issue worth watching.

Tags: Financial Times, Freedom of Information, International