ABSTRACT
The process of financialization is not just the globalization of finances, the growth of the importance of the field of finance both in the global and national economies. The Russian fund industry is relatively young, especially compared to the European financial market. The formation of the Russian financial market begins in the period of reforms in the 1990s. The first collective investment institutions appeared in 1991 and the definition of 'investment fund' was included in the legislative framework. Alternative investment funds (AIFs) are a shining example of that. The alternative investment market began to emerge not too long ago, in the 1970s. Their popularity is growing in the more developed countries as well as the developing countries. To analyse the AIFs' activities and assess their investment attractivity first an adequate classification of funds must be implemented and alternative ones must be defined.
