At a time when international financial centres are having to differentiate their “brands” – mindful of cross-border investment uncertainties kicked up by Brexit and other forces - the islands are trying out new ideas to stand apart.

Other innovations of recent years have included Guernsey’s image rights registry of 2012 and Jersey’s foundations law of 2009. 

Jersey’s ISPs enable multinational and international companies to set up savings plans in Jersey for non-resident employees. It is anticipated that the product will have a particular appeal in the Gulf region, practitioners say.

“We are already seeing interest in the new ISP model, because we have a large practice based around international employee savings and benefit trusts. We expect this to develop into a significant workstream complementing the existing flows of work with Middle Eastern clients in particular,” Katharine Neal, a trust specialist at offshore law firm opened an office in Dubai last year, an example of how such promotional organisations are marketing their IFCs around the world.) 

The Jersey ISPs are different from pensions because they can provide benefits before the age of 50, and can be set up to trigger payments in cases of redundancy, ill-health or divorce, Neal said. 

The new law was approved and enacted for the start of 2019, but Neal pointed out that specific guidance notes have not been issued yet. Neal points out that Jersey trusts set up as ISPs will have to meet the criteria of being irrevocable trusts, with at least one trustee based in Jersey, with the purpose of the provision of benefits to employees.

Green Guernsey
A few days ago ADM Capital’s food-focused Cibus Fund closed at more than $320 million after it was designated as the first Guernsey Green Fund. Subscriptions for the fund, launched in 2017, stood at $208 million at the end of September 2018. By the time it closed a month later, after registering as a Guernsey Green Fund in mid-October, it stood at $322 million, , said.