Trevor Manuel, the South African finance minister and the new chairman of the Group of 20 nations, has called for hedge fund managers and private equity firms worldwide to be more transparent.

A spokeswoman for Manuel said he was concerned by the large amount of money held by unregulated hedge funds and said they needed to be subjected to greater scrutiny. He will push for more disclosure from hedge funds and private equity at next year's G20 ministerial meeting, to be held in Cape Town in 12 months' time.