The European Commission has set out its vision for the modernisation of the EU framework for investment funds, which provide consumers with access to professionally managed investments on affordable terms and now account for over €5500 billion of assets. The improvements, which are put forward in a White Paper, will simplify the current Directive on investment funds in order to ensure that investors receive useful cost and performance disclosures when selecting funds, and to make it easier for the industry to achieve cost savings and specialisation benefits across the single market. Following further studies on cost-effectiveness and investor protection, the Commission plans to propose these changes in autumn 2007, in the form of amendments to the current Directive. Meanwhile the Commission will also look at whether there is a need to make similar changes for other fund products, especially real estate funds, that are not covered by the current EU framework.