Guernsey’s financial services regulator approved 27 new investment funds during the final quarter of 2014, resulting in a total of 137 additions during 2014.

Figures from the Guernsey Financial Services Commission (GFSC) also show that the net asset value of all funds under management and administration in Guernsey fell by GBP42.2 billion (16.2%) during the fourth quarter to GBP218.7 billion. The significant drop in value is almost entirely due to the exit from the jurisdiction of a large non-Guernsey scheme manager.

Dominic Wheatley (pictured), Chief Executive of Guernsey Finance – the promotional agency for the Island’s finance industry, says: “The reduction in the net asset value of funds in Guernsey during the final quarter of last year was expected after BlueCrest’s announcement in November that it was relocating from Guernsey for operational reasons. While this development was disappointing, the underlying picture is that Guernsey remains an attractive destination for funds, as demonstrated by the number of formations approved in the final quarter of last year and over the course of 2014 as a whole.”

The 27 new investment funds approved by the GFSC between the start of September and the end of December comprised one open-ended fund, 18 closed-ended funds and eight non-Guernsey open-ended schemes, meaning the total number of funds currently approved for domiciling or servicing in Guernsey stands at 1,048.

Guernsey open-ended funds decreased in value by GBP2 billion (4.8%) to GBP39.7 billion, while Guernsey closed-ended funds remained unchanged at GBP135.8 billion. Non-Guernsey schemes – open-ended funds that are not domiciled in Guernsey but have some aspect of their management, administration or custody carried out in the Island – decreased in value by GBP39.5 billion (47.4%) during the fourth quarter to reach GBP43.9 billion at the end of December.