The number of Guernsey funds and the value of assets under management continued their upward trend during the third quarter. At the end of September 1997, the total number of collective investment schemes reached a new high of 358 and this growth is poised to continue with a further 39 funds in the pipeline. The total value of funds under management at 30 September 1997 amounted to a record £17.8 billion, up 32.8% since year end.

In the open-ended sector (see endnote 1), the net asset value of funds ('NAV') at the end of September was £12.1 billion, an increase of 9.4% from the previous quarter. The net increase of three in the number of funds during the first quarter brings the total number of open-ended schemes to 172. During the first nine months of the year 31 new funds were authorised and 41 umbrella classes were added to existing authorised funds, bringing the total number of investment pools to 494 (up 4% from the previous quarter). Guernsey funds continue to attract global investors and this is reflected in a further £353 million in net new investment during the quarter. Over £1.3 billion in net new investment has been achieved so far this year. Of the 10 funds authorised during the quarter, four were unit trust and six were open-ended investment companies of which two were protected cell companies. Four promoters/sponsors not previously represented on the Island launched a fund in the quarter, one from South Africa and three from Switzerland.

The number of funds in the closed-ended sector (see endnote 2) also increased by a net five to a record total of 186 funds. While the value of funds under management decreased by 6.3% over the quarter, the number of registered holders increased by 11.3%. There were two promoters new to Guernsey in the quarter, one from Greece and one from Switzerland.

There is continued growth in the non-Guernsey schemes service sector for which management, administration or custody services are provided in Guernsey by local managers or custodians. Consent was given to local fund professionals to provide services for an additional 28 non-Guernsey schemes in the nine months to the end of September 1997 (as compared with 14 such schemes during the whole of 1996). The net position is that there are to date 71 non-Guernsey funds with a total value of £4.2 billion. This represents an increase of 20% since year end in the number of funds and an increase of approximately 35% in the value of funds over the same period.

ENDNOTES

1. Open-ended schemes are funds which are offered for sale throughout the life of the fund and without limitation on the shares/units which investors are entitled to redeem on demand subject to any applicable notice period.

2. Closed-ended schemes normally have a fixed capital issued once and for all and investors have no absolute entitlement to redeem their shares/units.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.

For further information contact Nigel Taylor, Director of Investment Business or Tammy Menteshvili, Deputy Director of Investment Business on Tel: +44 (0) 1481 712706 or visit the Guernsey Financial Services Commission Web Site at:

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