Opening Europe to risk capital

OXFORD - The European Commission has unveiled a series of legislative and other measures to be taken next year in order to speed up the integration of risk capital markets and facilitate access to private equity by European companies.

The Commission proposes to proceed by mid-2000 with regulatory actions that would facilitate the holding of equity in unlisted small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by institutional investors; make it easier for SMEs to raise cross-border risk capital; and set the basis for the creation and smooth functioning of an EU patent system...