Equity Fund Services, the fund administration division of the Equity Trust group, has opened an office in the Cayman Islands offering a full range of fund administration services. Equity Fund Services, the fund administration division of the Equity Trust group, has opened an office in the Cayman Islands offering a full range of fund administration services.

Equity Fund Services says the opening of the Cayman office is strategic in its expansion of activities in the western hemisphere, including South America, where the firm already offers fund services from offices in New York, Curaçao, British Virgin Islands and Brazil.

The Equity Trust group has several decades of experience in complex fund administration. Equity Fund Services has around USD16bn in assets under administration and offers services from 11 global locations, also including Amsterdam, Luxembourg, Guernsey, Jersey, London, Hong Kong and Malaysia.

Equity Trust, which is one of the top three global providers of trust and fiduciary services, plans to establish itself as a major global player in the fund services market over the next two to three years.

Equity Fund Services provides a full range of back- and middle-office services to hedge funds, funds of funds, real estate funds and private equity funds, including tax-efficient structures and directorships. The Equity Trust group has more than 1,000 staff at offices in 30 countries in Europe, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean.

The group, which is owned by private equity firm Candover and senior management, also has a presence in Argentina, Aruba, Belgium, Bermuda, China, Cyprus, Labuan, Liechtenstein, Malta, Mauritius, New Zealand, Panama, Samoa, Singapore, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, the Netherlands Antilles and Uruguay.