IFC of the Year – global jurisdiction news and developments

Date: 18 Oct 2023

Karen Jones

Ahead of the Citywealth IFC Awards on 24 January 2024, Citywealth CEO Karen Jones summarises international updates from IFCs. Featuring: Jersey; Singapore; Bermuda; Guernsey; Cayman; Delaware; Abu Dhabi (AGM); and Isle of Man. Tickets for the IFC Awards available now.

Jersey

Jersey had Robert Peston at their annual private wealth conference. Robert Moore, the key contact for Jersey Finance, helped put on a monster day with sustainability and risk as their key agendas. Entitled ‘Strategies for a World in Transition’, the event attracted 500 delegates. Reflecting on the event, Joe Moynihan, Chief Executive Officer, Jersey Finance, said: “There’s no doubt that the world now faces a number of immediate and longer-term challenges – from asset volatility, political change and war in Europe, to the impact of climate change, the rise of AI.” Jersey Finance’s Deputy CEO, Amy Bryant, has been shortlisted in the Woman of the Year – Government, Regulatory and Not-for-profit Organisations category at the 2024 Citywealth Powerwomen International Awards. https://www.citywealthmag.com/powerwomen-awards-international-voting/

There is also a Jersey and Guernsey TV show now out on Channel 5 which, according to the Jersey Evening Post, has had 1.1 million viewers and is providing a boost to Jersey and Guernsey tourism. Celebrating the natural beauty and historical heritage of the beautiful islands it looks at individual stories including agriculture and Liberation Day. https://www.channel5.com/show/jersey-and-guernsey

Lyndon Farnham, Deputy State of Jersey for St Mary, St Ouen and St Peter also made an appeal for funding for their Jersey Reds rugby club. The club players are at a high level and this is a great opportunity for someone. You can contact him directly on l.farnham@gov.je

Citywealth’s recommendations in Jersey are Jonathan Giles, Managing Director of Rathbone Investment Management International, and Rebecca Stannard, Senior Director, Marketing and Business Development, JTC. Both have a cheerful welcome and passion to promote Jersey Financial Services.

Other notable people in Jersey being celebrated are Dominique Burnett, Director of Private Client Services at the Fairway Group. Dominique has over 20 years’ experience in the fiduciary industry, her primary areas of focus include complex asset protection for HNW entrepreneurial clients, strong corporate governance and bespoke administration services. Louise Richardson, Government of Jersey. Heather Tibbo, Crestbridge: based in Jersey, Heather is a member of the Board of Managers at Crestbridge Fiduciary and Chief Executive Officer of Crestbridge Family Office Services. Heather has over 25 years’ experience in the UHNW sector. She has worked with UHNWIs, their families and institutions to provide a comprehensive range of family office services to families and corporate clients based in multiple jurisdictions. Vote for everyone in Jersey, both champions (men) and women, using this link: https://www.citywealthmag.com/powerwomen-awards-international-voting/

Singapore

Citywealth’s editor published an article on whether to choose Hong Kong or Singapore. Pertinent in light of the long Chinese lockdown and control. Leading lights discuss the where’s and wherefores but ultimately decided Hong Kong is for the Chinese and Singapore serves different markets. Read the insight here: https://www.citywealthmag.com/news/hong-kong-and-singapore-competitive-or-complementary/

Charles Russell Speechlys officially opens Singapore office. The Singapore office will be led by Jeffrey Lee, a Partner in the Firm’s Hong Kong office. Hailing from Singapore, Jeff moved to Hong Kong in March 2019 after spending several years practising in London. He advises on complex international structuring for international clients, including their establishment for estate and succession planning, asset protection and personal tax mitigation. Jeff also specialises in tax planning, advising non-UK domiciled persons moving to the UK. Jeff will be supported by the Firm’s Head of Asia, Simon Green.

In other news, the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s Project Guardian, which got underway in the back end of 2022, is announcing successes: “Project Guardian is a collaborative initiative with the financial industry that seeks to test the feasibility of applications in asset tokenisation and DeFi while managing risks to financial stability and integrity.” UBS have been a key mover. https://www.mas.gov.sg/schemes-and-initiatives/project-guardian

Citywealth posted about this on its Crypto LinkedIn feed https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7116704531316396033

Bermuda

Editor Ashleigh John once again put together editorial on BVI, Cayman and Bermuda:  https://www.citywealthmag.com/news/the-offshore-update-bvi-cayman-bermuda/

Bermuda is up for IFC of the year in the Citywealth IFC awards 2024. Vote here: https://www.citywealthmag.com/ifc-awards-shortlist/

Steven Rees Davies, Partner at Carey Olsen in Bermuda, provided insight into what we are seeing in the digital asset sphere: “Over the past 6 to 12 months we have seen an increase in the sophistication of digital/virtual asset projects and in particular more real use cases for blockchain than we have seen in the previous few years. The tokenisation of real world assets (RWAs) and increased focus (again) on decentralised finance (DeFi) are two particularly hot topics in the region right now.”

Key individuals in the region include Michelle Wolfe, Chair, Meritus Trust. Michelle is the epitome of a trusted advisor. She is passionate about and committed to the families that she serves. Her warmth, high emotional intelligence, vitality, and technical strengths empower her to handle the most complex and sensitive situations. These, combined with her leadership and entrepreneurial qualities, have propelled her towards success as a respected fiduciary and trusted advisor to families worldwide. Michelle’s earlier roles were as Managing Director of Rothschild Trust (Bermuda) Limited, Coutts (Bermuda) Limited and Butterfield Trust (Bermuda) Limited. Michelle won a Citywealth Powerwomen Awards – Woman of the Year – Business Growth (Boutique) – Gold award, 2020. You can read her reviews on the Citywealth Leaders List here: https://www.leaderslist.co.uk/leaderslist/michelle-wolfe

Vanessa Schrum, Partner, Appleby: Vanessa is a Partner and Group Head of the Private Client and Trusts department in Bermuda. Vanessa has extensive experience on a wide range of trust and estate planning matters. She regularly advises on the use of Bermuda private and commercial trust structures (including purpose trusts and unit trusts), pension trusts, trust restructuring often with a multi-jurisdictional element, the administration of complex and large estates and all areas of probate and equity matters in Bermuda, including applications to the Supreme Court of Bermuda.

Bermuda also won a glossy, travel magazine tourism award: Bermuda ranked #1 in Condé Nast Traveler Readers’ Choice Awards 2023. Tracy Berkeley, CEO of the Bermuda Tourism Authority (BTA), expressed her joy upon being notified: “We are thrilled.” The award is based on “feedback of over 240,000 readers and celebrates Bermuda as an unparalleled destination that inspires and delights visitors.” The win was in the Caribbean and Atlantic category.

Guernsey

Date for diary: 2 November for the Guernsey Private Wealth Forum 2022. 2:00-5:30PM in the Leadenhall Building, London. The theme, ‘Families Investing in the Future’, will explore the importance of the next generation, succession planning, and incorporating new, innovative technologies. More information here: https://www.weareguernsey.com/finance-events/2022/guernsey-private-wealth-forum-2022/

Record turnover for TISE: Guernsey-headquartered The International Stock Exchange has announced a record turnover for the first half of 2023, overcoming macro-economic headwinds to post a £5.2 million turnover and after-tax profits of £2.4 million – an increase of 15.8%.

Locate Guernsey, who seek to attract UHNW residents, had their inaugural conference in London and it was a delight to hear about the art ventures with a Renoir show sponsored by Investec from 30th September to 17th December. More art is planned with Turner in the pipeline. Locate Guernsey is run by Jo Stoddart. Hedge veg was another fun enterprise, which is produce sold from the roadside or garden or over your hedge so “hudge” is handmade fudge sold in this way to promote Guernsey treats.

Another reminder re: the Jersey and Guernsey TV show now out on Channel 5 which according to the Jersey Evening Post has had 1.1 million viewers and is providing a boost to Jersey and Guernsey tourism. Celebrating the natural beauty and historical heritage of the beautiful islands it looks at individual stories including agriculture and Liberation Day: https://www.channel5.com/show/jersey-and-guernsey

Key individuals in Guernsey to celebrate in our Powerwomen awards are: Tiffany Gervaise-Brazier, Investec Wealth & Investment (CI) Limited; Nicky Kendall, Senior Trust Manager, Saffery Trust; and Wendy Dorey, Guernsey Financial Services Commission. https://www.citywealthmag.com/powerwomen-awards-international-voting/

Cayman

Our recent article from Citywealth on BVI, Cayman and Bermuda local commentary included Maxine Bodden Robinson, Director of IMG Trust Company in the Cayman Islands. IMG Trust Company Cayman Limited (IMG) launched in November 2022 under the leadership of experienced trust industry experts, Peter Goddard, and Maxine Bodden Robinson, a lawyer, was Of Counsel with the Maples Group in the Cayman Islands. She said: “With ESG we are seeing more depth or substance as families and UHNW individuals are getting to grips with what these trends mean to them and how they wish to structure their wealth for the present and ultimately, the next generation. Also where necessary making changes in succession plans, and structures that were well-laid many decades ago.”  https://www.citywealthmag.com/news/the-offshore-update-bvi-cayman-bermuda/

Other developments this year include: Saffery Trust completes acquisition of Holdun Trust (Cayman). The acquisition sees directors Zoe Day and Fiona Pileta of Holdun Trust join the firm, alongside newly appointed Senior Business Manager Laura Homer. Saffery Trust also announces the appointment of Andrew Needham as an Independent Director in Cayman. He will work alongside the Cayman team to help build the firm’s brand in the region, with his role focusing on client relationships and Family Office structures.

HIGHVERN appoints Head of Operations in Cayman: announcing the appointment of legal and private wealth specialist Tom Mylott as Head of Operations.

Taste of Cayman date for the diary: 13th April 2024 to celebrate local food and drink. In 2023 the Cayman Islands Department of Tourism (CIDOT), together with the Cayman Islands Tourism Association (CITA), hosted an intimate event in New York City to showcase the Cayman Islands’ culinary scene, highlight homegrown talent, and provide top-tier U.S. media also showcasing the https://tasteofcayman.org/ . The CIDOT worked closely with two Caymanian chefs and a mixologist to curate a four-course menu of elevated Caymanian comfort food perfectly paired with craft cocktails. Each course was made with indigenous Caribbean ingredients and locally produced spirits to highlight Cayman’s unique heritage. 

A key recommendation locally is Ingrid Pearce, Global Managing Partner, Walkers https://www.leaderslist.co.uk/leaderslist/ingrid-pierce

Delaware

Delaware Prosperity Partnership promotes Delaware as a financial services hub with big names like Bank of America, Barclays US Consumer Bank & Barclays Bank Delaware, Capital One, M&T Bank, Marlette Funding, WSFS Bank and JPMorgan Chase.  Delaware, they say, is a nationwide leader in fintech, business and financial services. The seminal legislation The Financial Management Act of 1981 kickstarted Delaware’s journey to becoming a hub for the financial services sector.

Delaware tourism launched an art trail in 2020 with art commissioned locally in key destinations. “The ‘Delaware Discoveries Trail’ strongly supports Delaware’s local artists and helps drive awareness of the great local talent in our state,” said Leah Beach, Executive Director of the Developing Artist Collaboration. “This is an incredible opportunity for artists to showcase their talent because their work will be seen by the thousands of people each year who visit these popular tourist destinations.”

A key recommendation from Citywealth Leaders List is Jenny Smith, Delaware Trusts & Estates Attorney, McCollom D’Emilio Smith Uebler LLC.

Abu Dhabi (AGM)

The second edition of Abu Dhabi Finance Week’s (ADFW) 2023 27-30th November will have a theme of ‘Investing in the Transition Era’,  with iconic investor Ray Dalio and expects Leadership of 3500+ top financial firms from over 100 countries: https://www.adgm.com/media/announcements/100-days-to-go-adfw-2023

With uncertainty in the region now following the current Hamas attack it will undoubtedly attract substantial security. Abu Dhabi is home to some of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds and is ranked as the most liveable city in the region.

Isle of Man

A big acquisition on the island was Fedelta being acquired by Boston after seal of approval from FSA. Chief Executive Katherine Ellis said: “The addition of our new colleagues from Fedelta Trust brings valuable expertise and skills to the existing team which will ultimately enhance the offering to our clients.” https://bostonmfo.com/

The fintech challenge in the Isle of Man aimed at promoting innovation and collaboration in the financial technology sector, attracted a diverse international cohort of participants, with over 80 applications received from 20 countries. 14 businesses from across the globe faced their industry peers on the 29th June as they presented cutting-edge solutions at the Isle of Man’s highly-anticipated FinTech Innovation Challenge Finale event at the Comis Hotel. Lyle Wraxall, Chief Executive of Digital Isle of Man, said: “The event was an exciting culmination of months of hard work and dedication, and I would like to congratulate our three worthy winners: SQR for their product verifies clients’ identities, Crucial Compliance for their monitoring system that provides safer gambling strategies, and finally Cygnetise for their blockchain technology that enables businesses to digitally manage and share authorised signatories in real-time.”  Michael Crowe, Chief Executive of Finance Isle of Man, added: “This helps to reinforce the Isle of Man as a global destination for Fintech businesses.” Tim Johnston MHK, Minister for Enterprise, said: “Digital innovation is key to fulfilling the ambitions of our Island Plan and Economic Strategy. It is through initiatives like the FinTech Innovation Challenge that we can strive to create jobs, and attract investment to our shores.”

Visit Isle of Man launches final phase of ‘Isle of Man – The Extraordinary Story’ campaign. The campaign supports the Isle of Man’s ambitious strategy to attract 500,000 visitors to the Island each year by 2032, up from nearly 320,000 in 2019. Visitor numbers were 275,000 tourists in 2022 and they are aiming to reach over 300,000 in 2023. The Visitor Economy Strategy 2022 – 2032 forms a key part of the Island Plan’s strategic programme to build a strong and diverse economy, ensuring the Island is well-connected, and enabling travel to, from and around the Island, making it an attractive place to live, visit and do business.

The Isle of Man was designated as a UNESCO Biosphere in 2016 in recognition of its special environment, culture, heritage and economy and its people’s desire to cherish and nurture them. The Island is the only entire nation Biosphere and all our land and our territorial sea is included.

https://www.biosphere.im/news

https://www.biosphere.im/biosphere/unesco-biosphere-isle-of-man

Key individuals in the island include Rachel Winterbach, Associate, DQ Advocates. Rachel has been shortlisted in the upcoming Citywealth Awards for ‘Woman of the Year – Rising Star’ category. Vote here: https://www.citywealthmag.com/powerwomen-awards-international-voting/

DQ Advocates on LinkedIn mention the Platinum Group (Formula 1’s largest ticket operator) who have entered in a new era by introducing Non-Fungible Token (“NFT”) ticketing for their events. Another individual to note is: Alex Gardner, COO of Affinity Group, a multiple-award winner with Citywealth and also shortlisted in the Powerwomen awards for 2023/24. A shout out to Andrew Morgan, CEO, Affinity Group as well: https://www.leaderslist.co.uk/leaderslist/andrew-morgan

Citywealth is also big fans of Clive and Andrew Dixon, Moore Dixon Isle of Man. You can find them on our Leaders List https://www.leaderslist.co.uk/leaderslist/clive-dixon and https://www.leaderslist.co.uk/leaderslist/andrew-dixon