(3)The Union market for AIFs reached EUR 6,8 trillion in net asset value at the end of 2022. Professional investors account for approximately 86 % of the net asset value of AIFs managed or marketed by authorised AIFMs and by sub-threshold AIFMs, i.e., the AIFMs referred to in Article 3(2) of Directive 2011/61/EU, in the Union. The Union market for AIFs provides over EUR 250 billion to Union businesses in private credit, and Union investors are responsible for 30 % of the global capital allocated to the whole industry. The size of the aggregated Union market for AIFs has continued to expand, increasing by over 15 % between 2020 and 2022, and AIFs accounted for one third of the fund industry of the European Economic Area at the end of 2020. Nonetheless, there is still room for the industry to grow by providing institutional investors with greater choice and enhancing the competitiveness of the capital markets union.