Carey Olsen Tops Guernsey Fund Survey

Carey Olsen has retained its position as the number one legal adviser for advice to funds established in Guernsey, according to the Guernsey Fund Survey 2012.

The annual guide, published by Monterey Insight, formerly the Thomson Reuters Lipper Fitzrovia report, provides a comprehensive analysis of the performance of all funds serviced in Guernsey and offers an insight into the primary service providers. Firms are ranked by the number of funds they advise and by total assets under management.

The guide, which is based on figures between 30 June 2011 and 30 June 2012, positions Carey Olsen in first place for advising on the largest total number of funds and assets under management. According to the guide, the firm advised 765 funds including domiciled and non-domiciled funds. This represents a market share of 50.83% - significantly higher than any other Guernsey law firm.

Carey Olsen also maintained its leading position advising 712 Guernsey-domiciled funds - 53% of the total market of these funds.

Overall the report identified a total of 1648 Guernsey-serviced funds with the total net assets rising from $333bn, at 30 June 2011, to $365.1bn, at 30 June 2012. Private equity and venture capital is the highest ranking Guernsey-domiciled asset class and represents 57% of fund assets in Guernsey.

Graham Hall (pictured), head of the corporate group at Carey Olsen, said: “Despite continued market volatility, Guernsey rightly maintains its excellent reputation for servicing a wide range of asset classes.

“We are pleased that we have retained our position as market leader notwithstanding a difficult trading environment. The results are a credit to our team's high level of dedication.”

Karine Pacary, Managing Director of Monterey Insight, said: “The importance of private equity funds for the industry is underlined by the fact that the five largest schemes launched during the past year were all private equity funds. It has been a pleasure to work with the local industry for the eighteenth year to deliver high quality research that helps those involved to grow their businesses.”