Invest Europe Professional Standards Handbook
What Invest Europe Is
Invest Europe (formerly EVCA — the European Private Equity and Venture Capital Association) is the principal industry association for private capital in Europe. Its membership includes private equity firms, venture capital managers, infrastructure funds, and their advisers and investors operating in the European market.
Invest Europe publishes research, performance benchmarks, and professional standards for the industry. Its Professional Standards Handbook is the central governance and conduct reference for European private capital practitioners.
The Professional Standards Handbook
The Professional Standards Handbook sets out principles and guidance for how private capital managers should conduct themselves in their relationships with investors, portfolio companies, co-investors, and the public.
At a high level, the handbook addresses:
Governance and accountability — How GP firms should structure their internal governance, oversight, and accountability frameworks. This is relevant to the governance principles described in limited partnerships and the LP roles file, including the role of the LPAC.
Transparency and disclosure — What GPs should disclose to LPs about fund performance, fees, portfolio companies, and conflicts of interest. Transparency expectations align with the investor reporting obligations described in investor reporting.
Conflicts of interest — How GPs should identify, manage, and disclose conflicts — including conflicts arising from co-investments, side letters, related-party transactions, and GP-led secondaries. This is directly relevant to co-investments and secondaries.
Professional conduct — Standards of behaviour for private capital professionals, including expectations around confidentiality, client relationships, and regulatory compliance.
Responsible investment — ESG and responsible investment principles as a component of professional standards (not covered in detail in this knowledge bundle).
Note: The Professional Standards Handbook is publicly available on Invest Europe’s website. This source note is based on publicly available summary descriptions. Specific sections, principles, and compliance requirements should be verified against the current handbook at the source URL above.
Why It Matters
LP/GP governance: The handbook provides the professional standards backdrop for the governance obligations, fiduciary responsibilities, and conflict management discussed in LP roles and limited partnerships.
LPAC and advisory boards: Invest Europe’s standards address the role of advisory committees and LPAC-equivalent structures in overseeing GP conduct and conflicts — consistent with the LPAC role described in limited partnerships.
Secondaries and co-investments: GP-led secondaries and co-investment processes raise governance and conflict-of-interest issues covered by professional standards. The relevant cautions in co-investments and secondaries are grounded in these principles.
Operational risk: Professional standards around governance, oversight, and disclosure are a key component of operational risk management — the handbook provides a reference framework for what “good governance” looks like in a PE context.
Investor reporting: The disclosure expectations in the handbook underpin the reporting obligations described in investor reporting, particularly around fee transparency, conflict disclosure, and fund-level vs investor-level reporting.
Relevant Local Files
Source Verification Note
This source note is based on publicly available descriptions of the Invest Europe Professional Standards Handbook. The full handbook is publicly available on Invest Europe’s website and should be consulted for specific principles, requirements, and guidance. This file does not reproduce handbook text or claim to accurately summarise specific sections without direct document review.