Guernsey Press

Guernsey retains its ‘best fund centre’ title

GUERNSEY has fended off competition from Jersey to retain its title of ‘best centre for fund administration’ at the 2018 Investment Week Fund Services Awards.

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Paul Smith, Guernsey Investment Fund Association chairman. (22771467)

Dominic Wheatley, chief executive of industry promotional agency Guernsey Finance, said the island went above and beyond meeting the criteria set by the judges, who were looking for a centre that offered a wide range of administration support to the fund management industry on an international basis. The island also won the award in 2017.

‘To be recognised as the best for two years in a row shows Guernsey continues to demand and deliver high standards that set it apart from other jurisdictions. We are still getting a high volume of incoming and repeat funds business from all over the world, which produces encouraging figures,’ said Mr Wheatley.

‘This award is a testament to the hard work being done in our funds sector by all parties, and new products such as the Guernsey Green Fund have helped us stand out. The island continues to offer an excellent stable and competitive business environment.’

Paul Smith, chairman of the Guernsey Investment Fund Association, said: ‘It is a clear recognition of the high standard of fund services available on the island.

‘The nature of the fund sector in Guernsey means that, as well as winning new mandates, we are also winning repeat or follow-on business from our existing client base and this is down to the excellent quality of the service providers located here.’

The island continued to offer a ‘stable and sustainable base’, he added, with Guernsey funds benefiting from being able to reach around 80% of global investors.

Guernsey’s entry cited several examples where it has innovated or shown itself to be a world leader in the implementation of new financial products and technology over the last 12 months.

It pointed to strong figures such as private equity funds standing above the £100bn mark and the growth in net asset value of Guernsey-domiciled funds – with figures showing three straight years of growth to the end of 2017. These figures demonstrated the solidity and stability of Guernsey for the administration and management of a diverse range of funds.

The island’s key example of its world-leading capabilities was the introduction of a world-first regulated green fund product – the Guernsey Green Fund – as part of Guernsey’s plans to become the ‘go-to’ jurisdiction for green finance.

The Guernsey offices of Northern Trust and PwC were also recognised at the awards for their use of a private equity blockchain solution, in what is believed to be a world-first, as they were jointly awarded the innovation award.

Ocorian and Maitland, which both have Guernsey offices, were victorious in the ‘best fund services provider’ and ‘best fund services solution’ categories respectively.