The European Union has decided to get serious about having sovereign funds from Asia and the Middle East pledge that their investment in the region are "financial" and not "strategic."

According to the Financial Times, "Peter Mandelson, the European trade commissioner, said the code would set out basic standards of governance and transparency for the funds."

Sovereign funds have made large investment in banks and brokerage houses in Europe and the United States and the regulatory authorities do not want these dollars to become a way for the funds to push their nation interests.

The request is a bit two-faced. Funds and corporation from the West have been putting money into Asia and the Middle East for years. Big U.S. companies are not required to sign documents disclosing their intentions when they make investments overseas. Plans by Congress and the EU to push legislation to regulate capital from abroad may back-fire. When U.S. and Europe banks need more cash, sovereign funds may simply elect to invest elsewhere.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

EU wants sovereign funds to set limits originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 23 Feb 2008 17:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.