Guernsey Tops Europe In Specialist Finance Centre Index
Tuesday, October 04, 2011

Guernsey has been rated highly in the latest index of specialist finance centres, as published by trade title The Banker, securing second position globally and the top spot in Europe.

Guernsey has moved up two places from last year to second place behind the Cayman Islands in the rankings of specialist finance centres. Jersey has slipped a place to go from third to fourth and the Isle of Man has also dropped a position, from sixth to seventh.

“These rankings substantiate what we have thought for some time; that Guernsey has proved more robust in the face of the global financial crisis and its aftermath than many of our competitors,” said Peter Niven, Chief Executive of Guernsey Finance – the promotional agency for the island’s finance industry.

“One of our greatest assets is the breadth of the local finance industry so that we are not just focused on one particular sector but we are firing on several cylinders which complement each other extremely well and mean that we score particularly strongly across the board.”

“Guernsey has also shown itself to be very adaptable ... we have been able to take advantage of niche opportunities such as captive insurance and private equity, and more recently within the international pensions' market. This is something we are looking to maximise in the future, through a variety of initiatives including Guernsey Film, renewables, foundations and image rights as well as our work in the emerging markets.”

The Banker rankings are based on data supplied by each centre and statistics for the value of each sector of the finance industry to the end of 2010.

Niven added: “The fact that these rankings are based on data to the end of 2010 gives me confidence that in fact our position is probably even stronger now than the current standings suggest.”

“We have seen a number of positive developments since the turn of the year, including stabilized banking deposits, continued growth in the value of investment funds, consolidation of our position as the leading captive insurance domicile in Europe and number four globally, and new data which shows that currently Guernsey is the world leader in terms of overseas pension transfers.”

“In addition, the island has also been commended by the International Monetary Fund for standards of regulation and the OECD has endorsed our continued commitment to international standards of tax transparency and exchange of information, which is supported by the fact that we have now signed 29 tax information exchange agreements.”

“Overall, these rankings from The Banker are a great boost for the standing of Guernsey as a leading specialist finance centre. It is very reassuring to know that we have already been building on this during the first half of 2011 and now it is our job to make sure that the momentum is maintained right through to the end of the year and into 2012.”

The rankings are published within the International Finance Centres supplement accompanying the October 2011 issue of The Banker.