TwentyFour advised by Carey Olsen on first Guernsey Fund

Carey Olsen's investment funds team has advised independent fixed income specialist TwentyFour Asset Management on the initial public officering (IPO) of its new fund the TwentyFour Income Fund Limited which raised £150 million in its first close.

This is the first time that TwentyFour Asset Management has chosen Guernsey as a domicile for one of its funds. TwentyFour Asset Management currently manages £1.7 billion for clients across public funds and bespoke portfolios.

The fund, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange's Main Market, has been established as a Guernsey domiciled closed-ended investment vehicle and will invest in a diversified portfolio of UK and European asset backed securities. It has also been structured to be fully compliant with the new UK tax rules for offshore bond funds.

The Carey Olsen team, led by corporate partner Ben Morgan (pictured) who was assisted by associate Emma Penney, advised on the Guernsey aspects of the fund's establishment including the registration with the Guernsey Financial Services Commission and other associated legal and regulatory matters involved with the listing. Eversheds LLP acted as UK counsel to the fund.

Nick Knight-Evans, partner and chief operating officer of TwentyFour said: “Guernsey's track record for listed, closed-ended funds combined with the quality of the island's advisers and service providers made the fund's domicile a very easy decision. The fund provides investors with the opportunity to access a specialised part of fixed income that insulates against some of the main risks in credit, namely rising gilt yields and changing corporate performance. Gaining this exposure while receiving an attractive yield premium, at a point in the market where unconventional policy action has pushed many of the traditional asset classes to record low yields, emphasised the proposition.”

Advocate Morgan said: "2013 is already looking to be a more positive year for fund raisings. This is the second Main Market fund launch Carey Olsen has advised on since the start of the year and we continue to see a good number of funds in the pipeline for launch as we go into Q2."