For the best part of 20 years, private equity sponsors and their global advisers have been attracted by the Cayman Islands' neutrality, efficiency, quality and flexibility – but also by its predictability. So, when the Cayman Islands announced in early 2020 that all Cayman-domiciled closed-ended funds (including private equity and real estate funds) would be required to register with the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority by August 2020, this seemed like a shake-up.