In a contribution to HFM's Guernsey 2019 Special
Report, Jo Stoddart of Locate Guernsey identifies the
strengths of Guernsey's funds industry.
Since the 1960s, Guernsey has had a funds business community. It
experienced massive expansion following the suspension and
subsequent abolition of exchange controls in 1979, and over the
following 40 years, evolved to become one of the world's
largest offshore finance centres, with a thriving funds
industry.
Initially attracting the smaller closed ended fund market in the
'80s and '90s, Guernsey began administering private equity
funds, at that time considered to be in an alternative and start-up
category. Regulated by the Guernsey Financial Services Commission
(GFSC), the island adopted a more open and pragmatic approach to
these types of products. As Guernsey attracted more and more
private equity funds, a body of experience and expertise
accumulated across the island. This created a significant snowball
effect, and
