Business in brief

DMS Offshore Investment Services, a fund governance firm, has won the 2014 Best Offshore Advisory Firm Award from the international magazine Hedgeweek. 

Hedgeweek also awarded Mourant Ozannes as the Best Offshore Law Firm. The firm received 1,600 nominations from Hedgeweek readers, including institutional and high net worth investors as well as managers and other industry professionals, for companies that they rated “best in class” in various categories. 

DMS was also selected through a poll of the magazine’s readers; the firm had no part in soliciting the award. More than 2,600 people took part in the voting, according to a press release. 

Matthew Brown, director for DMS Offshore Investment Services (Europe), accepted the award at a ceremony in London on Feb. 28. 

“We are humbled at this vote of confidence from Hedgeweek’s readership, and at the same time are thrilled that our fund governance work has been recognized for excellence by our peers in the industry,” said DMS founder Don Seymour. 

Jeffrey Short, Ernst & Young partner and Asset Management Leader for EY’s Bahamas, Bermuda, BVI and Cayman Islands practices, attended SIFMA’s Insurance- and Risk-Linked Securities Conference in New York on March 4 and 5. 

EY was a platinum sponsor of the conference. 

Mourant Ozannes has promoted three litigation lawyers in the Cayman Islands to senior positions in the firm: Charles Moore is senior associate, Rocco Cecere is managing associate and Tim Richards is counsel. 

Mourant Ozannes’s head of Litigation in the Cayman Islands, Peter Hayden, said: “We are pleased to promote Charles, Rocco and Tim … We are fortunate to have such high quality associates who are able to take a lead role in managing cases and delivering exceptional client service.” 

Cayman National Bank will permanently close its Edward Street Customer Service Centre on March 28. 

All 13 staff at the branch will be relocated to other offices. 

Bank president Ormond. A. Williams said, “Every successful business assesses its strategy from time to time and makes decisions considered to be in the best interest of key stakeholders.  

“We have carefully reviewed our network and concluded that a consolidation strategy delivers meaningful benefits to clients and shareholders, and as such we have decided to take this approach which we know will further enhance our service quality.” 

Ogier Cayman has been recognized as the top offshore law firm serving the hedge fund industry in the 2014 Alpha Awards by Institutional Investor’s Alpha magazine. The rankings are based on voting from 500 hedge fund firms, including many in Alpha’s 2013 Hedge Fund 100 ranking of the world’s largest hedge fund firms. 

“We are thrilled with this latest recognition from the hedge fund industry,” said Giorgio Subiotto, partner, Ogier Cayman and head of the firm’s global investment funds practice. “The Alpha Awards are extremely highly regarded in the hedge fund world, and this win further validates the outstanding service we strive for, especially as it comes on the heels of our win in the 2013 HFR Service Provider rankings.”  

Offshore law firm Appleby has been shortlisted by Chambers & Partners in the Chambers Global Awards 2014. Appleby is a finalist in the “Offshore Firm of the Year” category. 

In naming Appleby a finalist, Chambers recognized the firm’s prominent network of offices globally, its reputation as a leading offshore provider of legal services, particularly in relation to multi-jurisdictional mandate, and its strength in litigation and asset finance, according to a press release. The organization also called specific attention to Appleby’s recent representation of Alibaba.com in its privatization through a scheme arrangement under Cayman Islands company law. 

Chambers Guides have been ranking the best law firms and lawyers since 1990. Winners will be announced on March 27. 

The application process for international companies seeking to set up a physical presence in the Cayman Islands has gone online with the launch of Cayman Enterprise City’s new web-based client portal. The special economic zone developed the portal in conjunction with Brac Informatics Centre.  

The online system electronically connects CEC’s client services team with the client and their advisers. They can easily exchange documents at any time regardless of time zones and geographic locations.  

“The whole idea is to make it easier for the client to complete the process and view the status of their application at any given time,” says Client Services Manager Maria Phillip. “Sometimes there are several people involved in the process, in disparate locations and now they can all log in to review the application and make changes as needed.”  

Completed applications are automatically forwarded for consideration to the Special Economic Zone Authority, minimizing delays associated with insufficient data.  

The Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment has launched its new online jobs board which will allow CISI members and non-members globally to search for, and place, new jobs in the financial services industry. 

CISI Jobs Online, which can be accessed via cisi.org, links qualified professionals in the financial services industry with financial services firms and recruiters searching for employees. 

Ruth Martin, CISI managing director, said: “We have spent some time working with our partner Jobtarget to produce CISI Jobs Online to enable both members, non-member job seekers and employers globally to engage, knowing that they will be reaching professionals in the industry that other commercial jobs boards simply cannot reach.” 

The Cayman Islands Monetary Authority has signed the Gender Equality Pledge with the Ministry of Education, Employment and Gender Affairs, becoming the first organization in Cayman to make such a commitment.  

“We will continually strive to support this effort, and to monitor and enforce the principles of the Gender Equality Pledge,” said CIMA Managing Director Cindy Scotland  

With a workforce that is 65 percent female, CIMA said it ensures equitable participation in management opportunities with 15 women and 16 men in management roles.  

The authority also has family-friendly policies, such as flexible work schedules, paternity leave for male employees and a Wellness Committee promoting employee health initiatives. 

Last year, CIMA formalized its gender equality efforts with a large-scale, mandatory training session for all staff on the Gender Equality Law, 2011, which addresses sexual harassment in the workplace and discrimination in employment, training and recruitment on the basis of sex, marital status, pregnancy or gender.  

This year, the authority is intensifying its gender equality efforts, including, among other initiatives, hosting internal events to increase awareness about gender discrimination during March, which is designated Honoring Women Month in the Cayman Islands. The introduction of a mandatory online training program on gender discrimination and sexual harassment in the workplace is another of the authority’s immediate objectives.  

Tara Rivers, minister for Education, Employment and Gender Affairs, said “I am pleased to see that a Government Statutory Authority is taking the lead to be the first organization to take the Gender Equality Pledge and publicly commit to continuing to take tangible actions that serve to promote gender equality within the organization.”  

Minister Rivers encourages other employers to embrace this new way of thinking and doing business.