NEW YORK, Oct 2 (Reuters) -

The Managed Funds Association, an alternative asset

management trade group, announced on Wednesday its new board of

directors, as well as its chair Jody Gunderson, managing

principal at $16 billion credit investment firm AB CarVal, as

the industry prepares for the threat of higher taxes and new

regulation.

The new team comes as the advocacy group representing $3.2

trillion in assets managed by hedge funds and private credit and

equity firms prepares for potential changes in federal agencies,

including the Securities and Exchange Commission, as the U.S.

will elect a new president in November, and for discussions

around a tax bill that expires in 2025.

New administrations usually replace policymakers and

regulators, such as the chair of the SEC.

MFA scored a big win for the alternative asset industry this

year on the regulatory front, as a U.S. appeals court in June

overturned a major SEC rule imposing stricter oversight of

private funds, in a fresh blow for chair Gary Gensler's

ambitious agenda to boost transparency and stamp out conflicts

of interest on Wall Street.

It was the first time MFA sued a regulator. Besides the

private funds rule, the group has sued the regulator over a rule

requiring firms that routinely deal in government bonds to

register as broker-dealers and another rule aimed at boosting

transparency of short-selling. Both cases are still pending

decision.

Gunderson, who is replacing current MFA Chair Natalie

Birrell, president of Anchorage Capital Group, said the industry

group is "trying to game plan for the different scenarios that

it will face" and how to "advance the industry's agenda."

MFA has yet to deal with upcoming proposals and discussions,

such as a cybersecurity rule, which would require advisers and

funds to adopt and implement written cybersecurity policies as

well as address its risks, and the outsourcing rule, which would

ban advisers from outsourcing certain investment services.

The alternative asset industry opposes both proposals.

"As we look ahead to 2025, we're obviously going to be

navigating a presidential election and a new Congress, and that

will certainly have an impact on our advocacy tactics," said

Brian Corbett, MFA's chief executive officer, adding that a tax

increase on carried-interest income will be among the main

topics.

Carried interest refers to a longstanding Wall Street tax

break that let many private fund financiers pay the lower

capital gains tax rate on much of their income. The tax debate

next year could involve changes in the carried interest to pay

for other tax provisions.

On the regulatory front in Europe, where MFA opened offices

in London and Brussels in 2024 and 2022, respectively, Corbett

said efforts will be mainly concentrated on advocating private

funds should not be regulated as banks.