After a record year in 2021, Cayman company and partnership registrations kept growing last year, albeit at a slowing rate.
By the end of 2022 there were just under 120,000 companies on the register. The total number of active companies increased by 1.8% from 116,996 in 2021 to 119,128 at the end of 2022.
The number of newly registered companies dropped to 11,796 from a record-high of 16,748 in 2021. At the same time 9,825 companies were terminated, down from 12,006 a year earlier.
Last year, Cayman’s special economic zone registered 56 companies, while 35 companies were de-registered, according to General Registry data. New registrations further included 297 foundations, 861 limited liability companies and 371 segregated portfolio companies.
The number of active partnerships grew by 2,758 last year based on 4,698 new registrations and 1,914 terminations. This increased the number of active partnerships on the register by about 7.9% to 37,833.
However, on a monthly basis registration activity slowed markedly for companies and funds towards the end of last year.
General Registry statistics for trusts showed the second lowest figure for both the number of new registrations and terminations in the past 10 years.
A total of 94 new trusts exceeded the 2021 figure of 83, while 62 trust terminations compared with 51 a year earlier.
The number of trust companies fell by one to 138, while registered private trust companies increased by one to 145 and registered controlled subsidiaries by two to 44.
Fund numbers keep growing
Although mutual fund numbers declined marginally from 13,016 to 12,995 in the fourth quarter, the year-end total still represented a modest 2.2% increase over 2021 (12,719).
Private fund numbers, in contrast, continued consecutive quarterly growth rates throughout the year, ending 2022 with an 8% higher total of 15,854.
Meanwhile, the number of Cayman-based fund administrators dropped by one to 74.
Banking activity falls further
The total number of bank and trust licensees regulated by the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority fell below 100 to 94 last year, continuing a more than two-decade long decline.
Increasingly costly and onerous banking regulations worldwide, in addition to industry consolidation, have chipped away at the number of Class B banks that operate from the islands. In 2022, the total of Class B banks declined from 91 to 83.
The cross-border assets and liabilities held by these banks have dropped to $494 billion and $438 billion, respectively, compared to almost $1.9 trillion 15 years ago.
The number of Class A banks allowed to offer services locally, however, grew by one to 11, as NCB (Cayman) Ltd obtained its full banking licence, having held a Class B licence previously.
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