Cayman Islands updates
Banking
Structuring an ICO through the Cayman Islands
- Cayman Islands
- 03 November 2017
It seems that 2017 will be remembered as the year of the initial coin offering (ICO). The Cayman Islands is witnessing an upsurge in ICO-related business and structuring an ICO through the territory remains an attractive proposition. However, ICO-specific guidance is yet to be issued by the government or the regulator, and a number of legal uncertainties remain. Existing statutory and regulatory regimes must therefore be considered when structuring an ICO.
Insolvency & Restructuring
Primeo: should a liquidator alter register of members?
- Cayman Islands
- 20 April 2018
The Cayman Islands Court of Appeal has held that a liquidator cannot use his or her statutory power pursuant to Section 112(2) of the Companies Law to rectify the register of members where the effect would be to override investors' proprietary rights. It held that the section does not aim to provide for substitution of incorrect net asset value if, despite its incorrectness, it has been calculated in accordance with a member's contractual rights.
Litigation
Court of Appeal overturns anti-suit injunction in favour of Argyle Funds SPC Inc
Ogier- Cayman Islands
- 05 February 2019
The Court of Appeal has unanimously allowed every ground of an appeal by the liquidators of Argyle Funds SPC Inc. The key takeaway for the Cayman Islands professional services industry is that where work is delegated to be carried out by related entities outside the Cayman Islands, any attempt to contractually limit clients' rights to bring claims against those entities must be expressly articulated within the contract.
Grand Court examines master-feeder redemption procedures
- Cayman Islands
- 16 October 2018
A recent Grand Court decision is significant for Cayman master-feeder fund structures. Funds and their advisers should review the redemption provisions in master fund articles of association and partnership agreements to ensure that, operationally, redemptions are being effected in accordance with such documents.
Grand Court gives directions for dissenters' discovery in appraisal action
- Cayman Islands
- 11 September 2018
Following the recent Court of Appeal decision in Qunar, the Grand Court handed down written reasons for its further directions for dissenters' discovery in a Section 238 appraisal action. The reasons acknowledge that the Grand Court's approach to discovery has changed as a result of the Court of Appeal's decision, such that a "general requirement for automatic mutual disclosure" now applies.
Dishonesty is a serious allegation and must not be pleaded lightly: rolled-up plea is insufficient
- Cayman Islands
- 21 August 2018
The Grand Court has set out the requirements for pleading a cause of action of dishonest assistance and reaffirmed the established principles of the defence of estoppel. The decision provides welcome comfort to corporate entities with robust and thorough systems for detecting fraud.
Security for costs – a foreign affair
- Cayman Islands
- 17 July 2018
During the early stages of litigation, a well-advised defendant will consider how to enforce a Cayman Islands court costs order in the foreign jurisdiction where the claimant's assets are located, and whether it should seek security from the claimant for the costs of doing so. The Court of Appeal has recently considered whether a foreign claimant should give security limited to the costs of enforcing an order in the foreign jurisdiction only or for the (much greater) amount of defending the appeal.
Private Client & Offshore Services
Contributed by OgierQ&A on Cayman AML regime: service providers, delegation and risk-based approach
- Cayman Islands
- 13 June 2019
The government and the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority are well aware that it is imperative that the Cayman Islands is not only perceived to, but does in fact, play a central role in the global fight against money laundering and terrorist financing. At the same time, there is a deep understanding of the need to remain competitive and commercial. This article addresses a number of key questions concerning the 2018 amendments to Cayman's anti-money laundering regime.
Impact of evolving relationship between investors and managers on fund structuring
- Cayman Islands
- 06 June 2019
This article addresses how the landscape for the structuring of offshore investment funds established in the Cayman Islands is changing and how this change is being driven by the evolving relationship between investors and investment fund managers – in particular, how the balance of power has in many cases shifted from the manager to the investor.
Cayman Islands economic substance requirements
- Cayman Islands
- 11 April 2019
New legislation recently came into force in the Cayman Islands requiring in-scope entities that carry on particular activities to have demonstrable economic substance in Cayman. Relevant entities must make an annual report as to whether they are carrying on one or more of a defined list of activities (relevant activities). If they are, they must satisfy an economic substance test in Cayman in respect of such relevant activities.
Latest interpretation of illegality defence
- Cayman Islands
- 04 April 2019
A Cayman court recently considered numerous complex areas of the law concerning commercial fraud and the ability to trace assets through corporate groups and into sophisticated financial products. This article discusses the court's findings regarding the illegality defence and the lessons which can be derived for future Cayman cases in which this defence might be engaged.
Not in dispute – why Cayman leads in cross-border dispute resolution and how the sector is evolving
- Cayman Islands
- 28 March 2019
Insolvency and restructuring cases are perhaps the most common types of cross-border dispute heard by the Grand Court, but other examples include trust disputes, which can often involve high-net-worth families and trust assets spread across the globe, and the enforcement of foreign judgments and arbitral awards. High-profile examples of cross-border cooperation between the Grand Court and foreign courts include the Bank of Credit and Commerce International liquidation and the Ocean Rig restructuring.
White Collar Crime
Q&A on Cayman AML regime: service providers, delegation and risk-based approach
- Cayman Islands
- 17 June 2019
The government and the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority are well aware that it is imperative that the Cayman Islands is not only perceived to, but does in fact, play a central role in the global fight against money laundering and terrorist financing. At the same time, there is a deep understanding of the need to remain competitive and commercial. This article addresses a number of key questions concerning the 2018 amendments to Cayman's anti-money laundering regime.
AHAB v Saad – importance of a particularised and principled tracing claim
- Cayman Islands
- 23 July 2018
In Ahmad Hamad Algosaibi & Brothers Company (AHAB) v Saad, the Grand Court found that AHAB's claims, which attempted to trace its funds into the hands of defendant SIFCO5, were "unparticularised and unprincipled". Further, AHAB was unsuccessful in establishing that funds representing traceable proceeds from the Money Exchange reached SIFCO5 or in articulating any discernible cause of action against SIFCO5 in respect of such funds.
Grand Court dismisses multibillion-dollar fraud claims in one of largest Ponzi schemes in history
- Cayman Islands
- 09 July 2018
In a landmark ruling, the Grand Court emphatically dismissed a multibillion-dollar claim in a case involving allegations of fraud arising from one of the largest corporate collapses of the financial crisis. The case has showcased the court's ability to manage high-profile large-scale litigation, demonstrating especially the quality of the Cayman Islands judiciary and the court's ability to use cutting-edge technology, as well as the resources and flexibility to manage a year-long, multi-jurisdictional trial.
Anti-money Laundering Regulations for unregulated investment and insurance entities to take effect
- Cayman Islands
- 18 December 2017
Under new anti-money laundering legislation, the list of activities classed as relevant financial businesses has been expanded. Unregulated investment funds and some insurance entities have now been given a grace period until May 31 2018 to establish anti-money laundering compliance programmes. This is a welcome move, particularly for unregulated investment funds which were not bound by the preceding regulations and therefore may not have policies and procedures in place.
New Anti-money Laundering Regulations come into force
- Cayman Islands
- 20 November 2017
The government recently adopted updated Anti-money Laundering Regulations. The regulations demonstrate the Cayman Islands' ongoing commitment to comply with the highest international standards on combating money laundering and terrorist financing and aim to ensure consistency with the Financial Action Task Force 2012 recommendations. The move is part of an overall update of the territory's anti-money laundering regime.
