Our monthly roundup of news, events and sponsor reading material.

Message from the Chair

We would like to welcome Aspida Group and Ruffer LLP who are joining us as new GAT sponsors from 1st April, joining existing sponsors Carey Olsen and KPMG. Our sponsors provide a wealth of knowledge and information to members about many relevant topics that will help shape us as fiduciary professionals.  We remain grateful for their support.   

As always, I would be pleased to hear from members to understand any frustrations or concerns - contact me.

Enjoy your March newsletter. 

Kind regards

Rhona Humphries

GAT Chair

Members' Area

Please note that the password to access your Members' Area page on the GAT website is "Trustees".

The Members' Area will develop over time, and will be populated with consultation responses and papers / advice issued by GAT and / or the Technical Committee.

NEWS

Financial update details economic resilience in 2020

The Policy & Resources Committee published a financial update on Friday 26th March, which includes further detail on Guernsey's economic performance and public finances in 2020.

The States' financial position is now expected to be improved by £32m on the 2021 Budget forecast from November. As the update shows that is largely down to a very successful final quarter of 2020 for most business sectors.

Treasury lead for the Committee Deputy Mark Helyar said:

"We should be really encouraged by how businesses bounced back in the second half of 2020, especially the final quarter. That's important as we now come out of our second lockdown. We're confident we will see another quick and strong rallying from businesses in wide range of sectors and if we do, 2021 can be an even better year overall."

The provisional Financial Position for 2020 which was published in November can be viewed here

New Commissioner appointment to be recommended to the States

The Policy & Resources Committee and the Guernsey Financial Services Commission are pleased to announce the recommendation to the States of Deliberation of the appointment of Mr Julian Winser as a Commissioner for a three-year term from 1st June 2021, and as the Commission's next Chairman from 31 December 2021.

As Chairman he will succeed Drs Cees Schrauwers, who retires on 30 December 2021. The nomination of Mr Winser follows an open recruitment exercise which commenced in December of last year.

Country lists updates to the Handbook and Instruction

On Friday 5th March the Commission issued amendments to the country lists in Appendix C and Appendix I of the Handbook on Countering Financial Crime and Terrorist Financing reflecting the Financial Action Task Force’s updated list of jurisdictions under increased monitoring, which includes the Cayman Islands, Burkina Faso, Morocco and Senegal.

Updates to jurisdictions identified by other relevant external sources have also been made.

The amendments include the removal of the Cayman Islands from the list of equivalent jurisdictions in Appendix C and its addition to the list of countries and territories identified in Appendix I which may present a higher risk of money laundering and terrorist financing.  

At the same time an instruction is issued to all specified businesses specifying the steps to be taken before the end of September 2021 in respect of business relationships they have which are connected to the Cayman Islands.

Similar action is being taken in the other Crown Dependencies.

For further information, updated appendices, the instruction and the latest FATF notice please click the button below.

Commission publishes two papers addressing Green and Climate related Risk

On 11th March the Commission published a Spring Green Consultation Paper and its Thematic Review of the Guernsey Green Fund Regime.  Both documents underline the Bailiwick’s ongoing commitment to this important area.

The Spring Green Consultation Paper proposes an addition to the Finance Sector Code of Corporate Governance, to take specific account of climate change considerations and two minor modifications to the Guernsey Green Fund Rules.

The Thematic Review analyses the existing Guernsey Green Fund population, their compliance with the Guernsey Green Fund Rules, and reaches five key findings. Further reading here.

Guernsey Finance appoints first dedicated South Africa representative

Guernsey Finance has appointed its first dedicated representative in South Africa.

Grant McLeod has spent more than 20 years in financial services in South Africa, particularly in private wealth, with companies including Ashburton and Barclays Private Wealth.

He will look to build on significant developments made by Guernsey in South Africa over the past few years, in areas including investment funds and private wealth, through open-ended fund structures, trusts, pensions and other vehicles. He will also promote the island more widely in sub-Saharan Africa.

“I am really excited to be joining Guernsey Finance and being involved in Guernsey’s continued development in this region,” said Mr McLeod.

Regulatory review confirms Guernsey’s position as leader in sustainable finance

Guernsey’s position as the ‘go-to’ specialist finance centre for green and sustainable finance has been underlined by the results of a thematic review of the Guernsey Green Fund regime and the release of a Spring Green consultation paper by the island’s financial services regulator.

The regime provides a robust and transparent product, demonstrating independent validation to current and potential investors that its objective of mitigating environmental damage results in a net positive outcome for the environment.

Dr Andy Sloan, Guernsey Finance Deputy Chief Executive, Strategy said: “The review demonstrates that the regime is working well and validates that its robust rules preclude greenwashing, demonstrating that it is a popular and serendipitous product.”

Please click the button below to read the Summary Minutes from the GIBA Council meeting held on Thursday 18th February 2021.

EVENTS

The GAT Members' Luncheon will take place on Wednesday 7th April, in the Conservatory at Moores Hotel, St. Peter Port.  

Speakers are Mark Dunster and Simon Florance of Carey Olsen's Regulatory team who will be covering the steps required when the FIU gets in touch.

This lunch is now full but please join our waiting list via the booking link below if you would like to join us if a space becomes available. 

STEP Lunchtime Lecture Series

With Guernsey moving into Stage 3 of our exit from lockdown, STEP Guernsey is delighted to be able to recommence our in person lectures which will run monthly in tandem with our popular virtual events.  The 2020/2021 series continues with the next presentation by Jonathan Gamble of Asset Risk Management on Wednesday 21st April in the Colborne Room at the OGH.

We will continue to deliver our virtual programme of events alongside the physical lectures. Please ensure that you/your colleagues are on our local branch mailing list to continue to receive updates from STEP Guernsey. If you wish for a colleague to be added to our mailing list, please sign up here:  STEP Guernsey Mailing List

Our virtual lectures are available for a short period after the lecture. You can view details here: STEP Guernsey Online Lectures - please contact us for individual passwords.

STEP Guernsey’s flagship event allows delegates to meet, network and gain important knowledge and technical updates from outstanding speakers in the industry. Delegates will gain valuable CPD points whilst learning from industry experts about a broad range of relevant and current topics. 

For 2021, this will be held on Thursday 10th June with a networking breakfast in the Concourse, followed by the main event in the David Ferguson Hall at Beau Sejour, Amherst, St Peter Port, Guernsey.

Tickets will be available to book shortly.

10th Annual Conference - 22 April 2021

The Commission is planning to hold its 10th Annual Conference as a physical event in the Whittaker Hall at St James on 22 April 2021.

Formal invites together with the conference programme will be issued shortly.

April GTA Courses & Events

Members may be interested in the following courses and events taking place in April. Courses are due to recommence Face-to-face from Tuesday 13th April.

The Guernsey MLRO/MLCO Masterclass

This half day course details the roles and responsibilities of the MLRO and the MLCO within the Guernsey Financial Services Industry.  Take away a thorough understanding of duties to be undertaken under the GFSC Handbook for Financial Crime and to enhance the application of the anti-money laundering regime.

Cost: £195
Dates: 13 April 2021
Venue: GTA University Centre
Times: 09.00 to 12.30

Further details and registration here.

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Compliance CPD Series: Trusts in crisis – Dealing with allegations of money laundering

The next one hour session in this popular series with Chris Edwards of Mourant will guide delegates through the steps they need to take and issues they should be aware of when allegations of money laundering are made against trust assets.

Cost: £45

Enrol by: 22 April 2021

Venue: GTA University Centre

Times: 12.30 to 13.30

Further details and registration here.

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Corporate Governance

This half day course will take delegates through the corporate governance requirements for Guernsey companies and organisations and is aimed at those with 3 to 5 years’ experience in finance or commercial organisations, and particularly those responsible for corporate governance within their organisation.

Cost: £195

Begins: 22 April 2021

Venue: GTA University Centre

Times: 09.00 to 13.00

Further details and registration here.

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Trust and Company Bookkeeping – Level 1

This one day session gives trust administrators and those new to client accounting a sound grasp of basic trust and company accounting.  It will ensure that delegates understand debits and credits and the basics of preparing simple financial statements.

Cost: £295

Start Date: 26 April 2021

Venue: GTA University Centre

Times: 09.00 to 17.00

Further details and registration here.

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Office 365 Fundamentals and Collaboration

This half day course is designed for Office 365 users who use SharePoint and OneDrive for document storage or if you are new to Office365 and want to learn productivity and collaboration techniques.

Cost: £195

Start Date: 27 April 2021

Venue: GTA University Centre

Times: 09.00 to 12.30

Further details and registration here.

KPMG launch their ESG focused podcast series.

KPMG have recently launched a new ESG focused podcast series. The episodes are released on a weekly basis, every Friday afternoon.

Click below to direct you to the webpage which updates with the latest episodes each week.

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