Grand Cayman (May 23, 2008) -- The Cayman Islands Financial Services Association (CIFSA) welcomes recent developments in the US which may require companies to supply information along the same high standards which have been implemented in the Cayman Islands for years.

CIFSA was referring to a statement made on May 1st by US Senator Carl Levin who was introducing the “Incorporation Transparency and Law Enforcement Assistance Act” in the United States Senate, whereby Mr. Levin lamented the fact that “each year the United States allows persons to form nearly 2 million corporations and limited liability companies in this country without knowing – or even asking -- who the beneficial owners are behind those corporations”

Of significance to Cayman, Mr. Levin also commented that “Most offshore jurisdictions already request this information as well, including the Bahamas, Cayman Islands, Jersey, and the [Isle] of Man. Our States should be asking for the same ownership information, but they don’t, and there is no indication that they will any time in the near future, unless required to do so.”

“We believe it is important that recognition of the higher standards of company incorporation in the Cayman Islands is recognised as this has been in place for many years”, says Mr. Eduardo Silva, Chairman of CIFSA.

Unlike the United States, the Cayman Islands directly regulates all service providers who are responsible for incorporating companies as these are all licensed and regulated by the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA).  Such services providers are also subject to onsite inspections by CIMA.  No such regulation exists in the United States for equivalent service providers and Mr. Levin is now seeking to raise the standards in this area in the United States.

The comments made by Mr. Levin are important because there is a common misconception that the regulatory standards of offshore centres like the Cayman Islands is of a lower standard than that which exists in OECD countries.  But closer inspections show there is a stark contrast in many areas and that in fact the standard applied offshore is much higher than the level applied in the onshore countries like the United States and in the UK.

“Statements like Mr Levin’s, which reveal the higher standards in places like the Cayman Islands are important in clarifying that we are still some way off from having a level playing field as far as regulation is concerned,” adds Mr Silva.  “We hope that discussion of this bill promotes a more balanced discussion of the well-regulated, high quality work performed in the Cayman Islands.”

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About CIFSA
A not-for-profit association, CIFSA was founded in November 2003 and is funded by its private sector members who currently include Admiral Administration, Appleby, Butterfield Bank, Cayman Management, Cayman National Bank, Close Brothers, CIBC Bank and Trust (Cayman), Citi Hedge Fund Services (Cayman), Coutts, Deloitte, Deutsche Bank, dms Management Ltd., Efg Wealth Management (Cayman), Fidelity Bank (Cayman), FirstCaribbean International Bank, HSBC Financial Services (Cayman), Julius Baer Bank, KPMG, Mourant, Ogier, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Queensgate, Rawlinson and Hunter, Royal Bank of Canada, Scotia Bank & Trust, Spectrum Global Fund Administration (Cayman), Sul America International Bank, Walkers, Wilmington Trust Cayman, and Young and Young CPA. http://www.caymanfinances.com

The Association’s board and membership also comprises the Islands’ key associations including: the Cayman Islands Society of Professional Accountants (CISPA), the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP), the Cayman Islands Fund Administrators Association (CIFAA), the Company Managers Association (CICMA), the Bankers Association (CIBA) and the Insurance Managers Association (IMAC).

For further information (not for publication):
Lynne Byles

Tower Marketing
Tel: +1-345-623-6711
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