REPRESENTATIVES from Guernsey's finance industry reassured attendees at a London meeting that the jurisdiction remains confident that it will continue to be a leading funds centre despite current uncertainties, including the EU’s proposed Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive.
More than 250 delegates attended the Guernsey Funds Forum at the Grange St. Pauls Hotel.
Peter Niven, Chief Executive of Guernsey Finance, said, “This event was aimed at reassuring our key supporters in London that we are dealing positively with a number of current uncertainties, in particular the AIFM Directive, and as a result of this work, the island continues to be an attractive and competitive funds domicile. It was a recurring theme that was discussed by all the panelists, and one that was accepted and well received by the many delegates.
“It was also reinforced that Guernsey is seeing an increasing amount of fund business coming through the pipeline as confidence returns to the markets. Indeed, this is reflected in the newly released figures that show the value of our funds business grew by 7.2% during the first quarter of the year.”
Concluding, Niven said, “The event was extremely successful both in terms of the number and quality of delegates and the high calibre of the speakers. The event left the audience in no doubt that Guernsey has dealt effectively with threats in the past, and we plan to continue in a similar vein to ensure the island remains a leading European funds centre for the future.”
