Cayman registers 30k funds for the first time
(CNS): Officials have claimed that the Cayman Islands continues to cement its place as a global leader in investment funds after the jurisdiction topped a record-breaking 30,000 funds. The Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA) said that as of 4 September, the total number of registered investment funds in Cayman was 30,038 (17,080 private funds and 12,958 mutual funds).
CIMA Managing Director Cindy Scotland said that Cayman’s investment funds framework remains prominent among investors for a number of reasons.
“This accomplishment underscores the strength and resilience of our regulatory framework, which continues to inspire confidence from the international funds industry,” she said. “It is a clear indication that the Cayman Islands remains the funds centre of choice for fund managers worldwide, reflecting our commitment to maintaining the highest standards of excellence and integrity.”
Current projections indicate that the 2024 year-end total will surpass 2023’s registrations, building on the steady growth of private funds since the introduction of the Private Funds Act in 2020. Last year, 16,551 private funds and 12,802 mutual funds were registered, both all-time high figures.
Cayman Finance CEO Steve McIntosh said the milestone speaks volumes to the enduring quality of the Cayman product. “Cayman Finance congratulates the many individuals and organisations whose hard work made this milestone possible, from those on the front lines driving our industry forward to the policymakers who created the rules of the road and the regulators that make sure the rules are followed,” he added.
In other news, Financial Services Minister André Ebanks is travelling this month to the UK, EU and US to maintain Cayman’s position, given the sector’s performance.
“Reaching 30,000 funds registered is certainly a collective country success for the Cayman Islands,” he said. “It speaks to the vision and the work of successive government administrations, the Monetary Authority with its respected track record that spans more than 25 years, and the contributions of industry members, from retired pioneers to the cutting-edge practitioners of today.
“It tangibly demonstrates how we in this country work tirelessly together to create a global investment funds centre of excellence and how we continue to take it from strength to strength,” the minister stated.
Ahead of his overseas trip, Ebanks stressed the importance of the industry’s contribution to public services and projects and the need to promote Cayman and protect its reputation.
“Having face-to-face discussions with international elected officials and civil servants, and with international industry, greatly helps us as a country to maintain our global regulatory effectiveness and to take advantage of emerging market opportunities,” he said. “It allows financial services to continue providing significant benefits for our people.”
In the UK, Ebanks will meet with government and civil service officials, attend a Cayman Finance roundtable, and speak at Maples London Investment Funds Forum 2024 from 9-11 September.
On 12 and 13 September, he will meet with EU and EU Member States officials. During the week of 15 September, he will attend industry-arranged client meetings in the US and speak at the Cayman International Reinsurance Companies Association’s reinsurance roundtable and the Ogier Funds Symposium.
Accompanying the Ebanks to the UK and EU are CIG Deputy Representative for Financial Services to Europe Julie Campbell and Representative to the UK Dr Tasha Ebanks-Garcia, both based in the UK; Director of the Ministry’s Regulatory Affairs Unit, Andrea Proctor; CIMA MD Cindy Scotland and Senior Legal Counsel Stephanie Adolphus; and Cayman Finance CEO Steve McIntosh and Associate Director Samantha Widmer.
Head of Advisory Services in the Regulatory Affairs Unit Duwayne Lawrence will accompany Ebanks to the United States along with CIMA’s Head of Insurance Supervision Division Kara Ebanks and Chief Analyst Dane Doctor; Cayman International Reinsurance Companies Association Chair David Self and CIRCA representative Greg Mitchell; Insurance Managers Association of Cayman Chair Kieran Mehigan; and Ms Widmer and Mr McIntosh.
This week, 7-14 September, Dwayne Seymour will act as the deputy premier, while Bernie Bush MP will cover the Ministry of Financial Services. For the week of 16-21 September, Jay Ebanks MP will be the acting deputy premier, and Heather Bodden MP will be the acting minister of financial services.
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Category: Business, Financial Services
Andre please don’t get suck down into selling us numbers that mean very little to the average Caymanian voter tell us how you are going to improve our lives and that of our children please.
Financial Services is the ONE thing we all depend on for most of government’s money. More funds = more $$$ going into government coffers. What the ministers need to do for the average Caymanian voter is stop splashing money about like there’s no tomorrow and start making savings that could eventually be passed on to the public by reducing duties and fees.
Andre – please don’t raise fees substantially. We could probably go up $500 a year for CIMA registration and annual fees but otherwise please leave it alone. Things are working well, the EU and OECD are leaving us alone for the moment. Let’s enjoy this brief window of making money for the greater benefit of these islands.
Pay no attention folks. This is just a cunning attempt to show there is no need for a cruise dock.
Only the dimmest politicians and policy makers would continue their slavish devotion to the interests of a handful of millionaire tourism business owners when we have a miracle financial industry that needs to be looked after properly to ensure the golden goose keeps laying.
I’m taking a wild guess here, but do all these acting appointments come with acting allowances on top of their already bloated salaries?
yes, they get acting pay as well.
This week, 7-14 September, Dwayne Seymour will act as the deputy premier, while Bernie Bush MP will cover the Ministry of Financial Services. For the week of 16-21 September, Jay Ebanks MP will be the acting deputy premier, and Heather Bodden MP will be the acting minister of financial services.
No matter how hard you try, you never could have made this sh!t up. How do we contact the Guinness Book of Records to measure who has the most resilient financial services ever?
I remember a time when we were touted as the “4th biggest financial centre in the world with 5000 registered funds”. Lols.
I recall 5 years ago that the lawyers on the island almost unanimously (and quite arrogantly to be honest) were of the view that the passage of legislation for regulating private funds, and all mutual funds with more than one investor, was going to lead to an exodus of funds out of Cayman to other jurisdictions. At the time many fund lawyers said the then 10,000 regulated funds would be at 5,000 in a few years.
So…how did that work out? Would the fund lawyers prefer curry sauce with their crow or would they just like to eat their crow plain?
That view may have specifically held by transactional lawyers.
It’s a complete non-sequitur to say that because fund numbers have gone up overall, we have not lost out on business due to the increased costs that the legislation has brought in and the vague and over inclusive drafting of the Private Funds Act.
We HAVE lost out on structures that have gone elsewhere due to this aspect. The fact that the global funds industry has grown overall doesn’t negate that.
Ultimately, the accounting firms pushed very broad definitions of what a “fund” is (so much so that you could argue that GE is a fund) AND the requirement that they be the ones to audit the same here in Cayman because it would make them more money.
Let’s not pretend this was motivated by some nobler aim on their part. If so – why not simply allow say, PWC NY (who may be auditing the sponsor’s other fund vehicles) to do it. The answer is simple, to help the partners in PWC Cayman earn more.
Nothing wrong with that per se, but the comment above is misses the truth of the matter by quite a way.
Ridiculous comment. You don’t know how many funds we would have had without the need for a superfluous, duplicate local audit that no one will ever look at. It stands to reason that the increased costs of such nonsense has driven business elsewhere that otherwise would be here in addition to the increase we have seen.
Proof for your comment? I dont think so. The SEC publishes quarterly statistics for private funds of registered advisors, and there is NO (ie, none) movement in the proportion of funds in Cayman. The latest stats released (from Q4 2023) shows US at 54% and Cayman at 32%, almost unchanged from 5 years ago. In distant third is Luxembourg at 5%.
Stop gaslighting.
If a fund manager wants to domicile in another jurisdiction to save a few thousand dollars, then fine. Cayman doesnt need these bottom-feeder funds.
So, there’s no price elasticity of demand in financial services and even if there was you didn’t want that work any way… gotcha. LOL
LOLOLOLOL
This week, 7-14 September, Dwayne Seymour will act as the deputy premier, while Bernie Bush MP will cover the Ministry of Financial Services. For the week of 16-21 September, Jay Ebanks MP will be the acting deputy premier, and Heather Bodden MP will be the acting minister of financial services.
“This week, 7-14 September, Dwayne Seymour will act as the deputy premier”.
Phew, with the full moon on 17th (“Harvest Moon”) who knows what might have happened with the DUI specialist 2nd in command.
Bernie Bush, financial services, what could go wrong….