The hedge fund industry has come a long way since Franz Müntefering, then chairman of Germany’s SPD and now the labour minister, referred to predatory investors as “locusts” two years ago. Jean-Claude Trichet, president of the European Central Bank, identifies in an interview in Friday’s Financial Times an “emerging consensus” on the need for voluntary codes of appropriate behaviour within the hedge fund industry. Amid UK and US reluctance to commit to such codes, this may seem unduly optimistic. But it is a reminder to the hedge fund industry that it remains in the spotlight.

It should not fear this attention. Hedge funds play a constructive role in the financial sector and have repeatedly proved helpful in spotting undervalued companies. The takeover battle over Dutch bank ABN Amro is but the latest example. London-based hedge fund TCI helped trigger a bidding war with an open letter and has since played an active role in shaping a deal.