(13)Investment funds providing loans can be a source of alternative financing for the real economy. Such funds can provide critical funding for Union small and medium-sized enterprises, for which traditional lending sources are more difficult to access. However, diverging national regulatory approaches can give rise to regulatory arbitrage and varying levels of investor protection, thereby hindering the establishment of an efficient internal market for loan origination by AIFs. Directive 2011/61/EU should recognise the right of AIFs to originate loans. Common rules should also be laid down to establish an efficient internal market for loan origination by AIFs, to ensure a uniform level of investor protection in the Union, to make it possible for AIFs to develop their activities by originating loans in all Member States and to facilitate access to finance by Union companies, a key objective of the capital markets union as set out in the Commission’s communication of 24 September 2020 entitled ‘A Capital Markets Union for people and businesses – new action plan’. However, given the fast-growing private credit market, it is necessary to address the potential micro-prudential and macro-prudential risks that loan origination by AIFs could pose and spread to the broader financial system. The rules applicable to AIFMs managing AIFs which originate loans should be harmonised in order to improve risk management across the financial market and increase transparency for investors. For the sake of clarity, the provisions laid down in this Directive that are applicable to AIFMs that manage AIFs that originate loans should not prevent Member States from laying down national product frameworks that define certain categories of AIFs with more restrictive rules.