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GUERNSEY FUND REPORT
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The 27th annual Monterey Insight Guernsey Fund Report shows fund assets serviced in Guernsey increasing to $532.7bn at the end of June 2021, up 24.4% on 2020.
The number of serviced schemes stood at 1,222 and the total number of sub-funds reached 1,443, an increase on last year (1,135 and 1,372 respectively in 2020).
Private equity/venture capital funds remain the most popular product of serviced funds ($388.4bn), followed by alternative investment ($60.8bn). The same applies for Guernsey-domiciled funds. PE/ VC funds are most popular by AUM and account for $307.2bn, followed by alternative investment funds with $50.2bn.
Of Guernsey-domiciled schemes, alternative investment funds saw the largest increase of assets of 54%, followed by PE/ VC funds with a 31% increase.
More than 90 groups and sub-funds serviced in Guernsey were launched in the year. New business accounted for $24.4bn
of assets, of which $22.2bn were PE/VC products totalling 62 groups and sub-funds.
More than 90 serviced funds and sub-funds migrated to the island, adding $10.2bn of assets, bringing the total of new business to $34.6bn in more than 180 funds and sub-funds.
Among fund managers, Apax Partners retains its top position with $53bn of funds, with Permira second with $43.5bn and Cinven with $29.9bn.
Northern Trust remains in top position, as it has for several years, for all three rankings of fund administration, custody and transfer agency. Across domiciled and non-domiciled funds, Northern Trust is the largest administrator by total net assets, with $108.0bn, followed by Aztec Group ($76bn) and Apex Group ($69.4bn).
Among custodians, the serviced funds ranking remains the same as last year – Northern Trust with $43.7bn, then BNP Paribas Securities Services {$10.8bn) and Butterfield Bank ($10.1bn). Among transfer agents, Northern Trust takes top spot with $99.5bn, with Apex Group second ($69.4bn) and Aztec Group third ($65.1bn).
The top two auditors were unchanged this year, with PwC auditing 439 funds and subfunds, and KPMG 259. Third and fourth places swapped, with EY ahead of Deloitte. PwC also leads by assets ($174.1bn), followed by KPMG ($132.8bn) and Deloitte ($103.2bn).
As for legal advisers, Carey Olsen remains the largest by number of funds advised (847), followed by Mourant with 165 funds and Ogier with 86.
TISE HITS LISTINGS RECORD
The International Stock Exchange (TISE) listed 1,111 new securities during 2021, surpassing its previous record of 865 in 2018. This was a 33.7% rise on 831 listed in 2020 and takes the total number on TISE to 3,669 at the end of 2021.
A key development was the Qualified Investor Bond Market (QIBM), a dedicated exchange for the listing of bonds marketed solely to international qualified investors. A total of 2,397 new issuances listed on QIBM, comprising 1,071 entirely new security classes, as well as 1,326 further issues to existing listings.
Done Deals
Imperium Fund Services has assisted UK fund manager Leafy Tunnel with the launch of its regulated medicinal cannabis and psychedelics fund – the first fund of its kind in Guernsey. Leafy Tunnel is an early-stage venture capital firm investing in alternative medicine for mental health and pain disorders. Imperium, led by MD Barry McClay and Client Services Director Charlotte Parr, provided support for fund administration, application and compliance.
Carey Olsen’s corporate team in Jersey has advised global payment solutions provider Checkout.com on its Series D funding round of $1bn, which now values the firm at $40bn. Primary investors in the latest funding round include Altimeter, Dragoneer, Franklin Templeton, GIC, Insight Partners, the Qatar Investment Authority, Tiger Global and the Oxford Endowment Fund. Working with lead UK counsel Allen & Overy and US counsel Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, the Carey Olsen team advising on all Jersey law aspects of the fundraising comprised Corporate Partner James Willmott and Associate Steven Khan.
Appleby has acted as Jersey counsel to LondonMetric Property in connection with the Jersey aspects of its acquisition of Savills UK income & Growth Fund. LondonMetric, a FTSE 250 listed REIT, completed the acquisition on 22 December. The fund owns 15 assets across 482,000 sq ft, mainly urban logistics and longincome assets in London and south-east England. The Appleby team consisted of Partner James Gaudin and Group Partner Iain Millar, assisted by Senior Associate Paul Worsnop.
Walkers has advised investment and asset manager Eagle Street Partners on real estate acquisitions in the UK and Ireland. These include office buildings in Dublin and Glasgow, a business park site in Newcastle, a build-to-rent development at Castleforbes in Dublin, and offices in Uxbridge, west London. Lawyers from Walkers’ Jersey Investment Funds & Corporate and Banking & Finance Practice Groups (led by Partner Jonathan Heaney and Group Partner Jon Le Rossignol, respectively) advised on the acquisitions, particularly the Jersey law elements of financing, acquisition and corporate structuring.
RBS International has helped pan-European investment firm Triton to secure its first ESG-linked financing, establishing a €1.455bn syndicated facility. Acting as lead arranger, facility agent and sustainability coordinator, RBS International committed €322.5m to the facility alongside four other lenders to support the Triton V fund. This latest investment will help Triton deliver its sustainability objectives and formalise its ESG programme. n ▼
Jersey for Private Wealth
We often hear that international finance centres, like Jersey, do not do enough to explain what it is they do, which is why over the last few years, Jersey Finance has made a commitment to investing in research to add clarity to Jersey’s proposition and the positive impact it makes in both local and global economies. For BL Global Wealth Edition magazine readers, we would like to highlight two particular reports from our library of evidence-based research and independent insights:
Virtuous Circles: Sustainable Family Governance Models in an Evolving Environment
Produced in partnership with WealthBriefing, this research report is essential reading for families and advisors who are seeking to know what current sentiment is in this space and what industry luminaries see emerging as best practices. It unites the findings of a global survey of practitioners and the views of a panel of experts drawn from leading firms, but perhaps most interestingly of all, the paper features a wealth of real-world examples illustrating what forward-thinking families are doing right now to create lasting legacies. Find the full report at jerseyfinance.je/research
In this timely report, advisors who work with ‘NextGen’ wealth owners will find clear insights into how the pandemic has affected the investment priorities of family offices and the leading role of ‘NextGen’ in the investment process. Produced by Family Capital in partnership with Jersey Finance, the report combines survey data from 50 family offices in Europe, the US and Asia who have portfolios ranging between US$200 million to US$1 billion, and references insights from one of the largest data sources on global family offices and their investment decisions. Find the full report at jerseyfinance.je/research
£1.14tr
of capital administered by trusts and asset holding vehicles
Annual average: 2017 - 2020 (Cebr, 2021)
60+ years
of experience and expertise in private wealth management
Choice
of structures and flexible regimes
1,200+
members of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners
Source: STEP Jersey Branch, September 2021
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MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS
Fund management group Carne is to acquire the Asset Management Exchange (AMX) from broker Willis Towers Watson – which as part of the transaction will take a minority stake in Carne. The deal, which is expected to close in Q2, will enable Carne to use AMX’s new investment ecosystem connecting investors, asset managers and service partners.
Suntera Global has acquired fiduciary services provider Nedgroup Trust, extending Suntera’s reach into Guernsey. Nedgroup Trust, owned by Nedbank Private Wealth, provides fiduciary services to high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth individuals, family offices and owner-managed businesses. It has a team of 70 in the Channel Islands (50 in Guernsey) and has an international client base, especially in South Africa. The business will rebrand to Suntera and completion is expected in early Q2.
Jersey firm Highvern has acquired Guernsey and Switzerlandbased Noble Trust Company. The deal, subject to approvals, will expand Highvern’s offering across the Channel Islands. The addition of a Swiss office will also complement Highvern’s family office services in this newly regulated jurisdiction. Noble will rebrand to Highvern in due course, but there will be no job losses.
TMF Group has completed its acquisition of Brazilian fund administration platform Paraty Capital. TMF will now administer more than €160bn of assets on behalf of its fund manager clients in Brazil, the US, Cayman Islands, Guernsey, Jersey, Luxembourg, Singapore, India, Hong Kong, China and Australia. As well as offering coverage across South America, TMF can now provide administration services to regulated Brazilian funds.
Zedra has acquired UK pension trustee and governance services provider PTL. Founded in 1994, PTL acts for defined contribution and defined benefit pension schemes, group life trusts and healthcare trusts. The deal adds professional trustee services to Zedra’s pension offering in the UK. It is anticipated PTL will be rebranded to Zedra, with PTL MD Richard Butcher and the firm’s Directors remaining in post to run the business.
JTC has acquired New York-based Essential Fund Services (EFS), which works in the alternative assets space, offering accounting, reporting and administrative services to investment partnerships and managers. EFS, co-founded in 2009 by Gerard M Federici, has $5.5bn of assets under administration. Federici will continue to lead the business and all EFS staff will join JTC’s ICS division. n
Some 142 securitisation bonds newly listed in 2021, more than double that in 2020.
TISE also boosted its position as a European venue for listing high-yield bonds, with 151 listing on TISE, taking the total to 386 at the end of December.
In addition, there are bonds listed on QIBM from well over 100 bond programmes, with a 110% rise in the number of securities listed via final terms in 2021 compared with 2020.
Within its equity market, TISE has built on its position as the second largest market for listed UK real estate investment trusts (REITs), with 15 new UK REITs listed in 2021. There are now 43 UK REITs listed on TISE – more than 40% of the listed UK REIT market.
Overall, the UK remained the largest single source of new business for TISE, followed by the Channel Islands and Isle of Man. TISE’s membership base saw its biggest growth in years, with seven new Listing Agents. And TISE Sustainable launched, with more than £8bn of new listings backing ESG initiatives.
INVEST EUROPE ESG LAUNCH
Invest Europe is to develop a standard for how private equity and venture capital firms report on environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, meeting rising demand for openness over this issue.
In November 2021, Invest Europe published its Climate Ambition, supporting the 2050 goals set out in the Paris Climate Accords. One of the workstreams is building tools for members and the industry and to develop standards that help the move towards net zero.
The European Data Cooperative (EDC) – a database established in partnership with national private equity associations by Invest Europe – will begin collecting ESG data from European private equity firms on key performance indicators. These include actions related to climate change, female representation in private equity-backed companies, and bribery and corruption policies.
JPF PASSES 500 MARK
The total number of registered Jersey Private Funds (JPFs) has passed 500, according to figures published by Jersey Finance.
There were 502 JPFs at the end of September 2021, up 38% on the previous year.
Launched in 2017, JPFs are aimed at sophisticated investors, offering flexibility, fast-track authorisation and lighter touch ongoing regulatory requirements. The structure suits the private placement route for marketing funds into Europe as well as within the ESG space.
Jersey Finance CEO Joe Moynihan (pictured) said: “These figures show the enduring strength of the JPF, particularly when it comes to private capital co-investment and cross-border institutional alternative fund structuring. By being cost-effective, flexible and swift to market, the structure has become a go-to vehicle that has played a part in the sizeable growth we’ve seen in our funds sector as a whole.” n
