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coMpaNY proFile | Optimus Group Limited Keeping Guernsey on the front foot The IMF is shortly expected to report its positive findings into the current state of Guernsey’s finance industry. Playing its own part in Guernsey’s clean bill of health is a company at the forefront of regulation and compliance in the island. Jon Taylor reports. Peter Mills and Andy Roberts of Optimus Group Limited. Guernsey’s been on the front foot recently what with a team setting new standards for local competitors at the commonwealth Games, Guernsey’s football team representing england in the UeFa region’s cup in croatia and andy priaulx keeping apace at the World touring car championships. Guernsey’s international sporting credentials have arguably never 52 | CONTACT | OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2010 | www.guernseychamber.com been better and the same can be said about Guernsey plc as a whole. our chief Minster has been spreading the good Guernsey gospel during his recent party political conference circuit of visits and Guernsey’s finance industry has also been on a promotional drive recently. as Guernsey and the rest of the world awake from the economic downturn, investors are starting to make more positive decisions about what to do with their money. Whilst a robust aMl regime may not be at the top of every potential client’s agenda when choosing a jurisdiction, more than ever, investors are aware of the need to have confidence in their chosen jurisdiction’s regulatory framework more generally, so they can be sure that the risk of anything going wrong is minimised and that if anything does go wrong, effective remedies will be available.
A comprehensive service in the very centre of all this is optimus Group limited. optimus is an independent consultancy established by investment professionals to provide tailored solutions and consultancy services to fund managers, fund directors and their service providers. in short they provide fund practitioners with peace of mind when it comes to all matters relating to corporate governance, regulatory compliance, risk management and assessment of third party service providers. ‘We provide assistance and guidance to boards and senior managers of companies in Guernsey to a host of regulatory and compliance concerns,’ said optimus director peter Mills. ‘optimus was established to provide support to those entities that require assessment of their service providers, for example collective investment schemes, and we can then offer an independent assessment of those service providers.’ Expertise and experience Mr Mills will be familiar to many in Guernsey for his role as a non-States member of the Board of commerce of employment, a member of Guernsey Finance’s china committee, a member of the Guernsey investment Funds association where he also sits on the technical sub-committee and a member of the Guernsey Society of chartered and certified accountants. He also has extensive experience as a director of over 30 companies with responsibility for corporate governance, risk and compliance which has put him in a good position to understand the needs of boards and fund managers. prior to establishing optimus, he was chief risk officer of Kleinwort Benson and managing director for Kleinwort Benson’s Funds and Fiduciary companies. So why did a successful and arguably very busy finance professional take the jump with optimus? ‘there is an increasing demand for expertise in relation to regulatory and compliance matters and in order to remain competitive in the eyes of investors, and credible in the mind of the regulators, both fund managers and administrators require a level of support. this is where optimus come in. We help marry the right funder manager with the right sort of administrator for its investment structures,’ said Mr Mills. andrew roberts, another familiar face who is well known for his work with Guernsey hockey, is also a director and a passionate advocate of the current opportunities for Guernsey in the fund arena. ‘Following a period of recent uncertainty, Guernsey is now witnessing a migration of fund managers to its shores and with our regulatory, compliance a risk management experience are well placed to ensure a smooth introduction to the local financial services arena,’ said Mr roberts who has worked in the finance industry for over 17 years in a variety of roles. He was a senior member of the Kleinwort Benson fund administration team and a relationship manager for several large property fund managers and was director of approximately 70 companies of those property funds. the last two years have seen him branching out to provide consultancy to poi licensees. this included providing advice and implementing controls for registration, due diligence and breach reporting. He has extensive it knowledge and has developed systems for fund administrators to improve processes and manage risks. A place to do business the pair make a formidable team and believe Guernsey’s reputation as a well regulated jurisdiction will only go towards the success of the finance industry for years to come. However, what of those who believe the island is over regulated with too much bureaucracy and legislation? ‘We see the Guernsey Financial Services commission’s corporate governance guidance issued in December 2004 and the framework of the code of corporate governance issued in January 2010 as good bases for all companies in Guernsey to operate to,’ said Mr Mills. ‘We can assist businesses to achieve a good level of corporate governance without too much additional burden or cost. this in conjunction with a good risk management framework will assist businesses to identify and focus on the key risks to their business and satisfy the regulator.’ ‘We provide assistance and guidance to boards and senior managers of companies in Guernsey.’ But is there enough flexibility in the regulatory confines imposed on business by the Guernsey Financial Services commission? Mr roberts believes the world is a very different place following the period of banking crisis and regulation is integral to any competitive finance jurisdiction. ‘perhaps local regulation could be more flexible in relation to dealings with different continents and markets but overall our white listing status is something Guernsey must retain and if this means stringent regulation then it’s something we just have to operate under,’ he said. one financial professional who has worked with optimus told me the company is like the cogs ensuring the mechanics that is Guernsey’s finance industry keep on working. However, i’d argue they’re more like the oil of our finance industry. Quietly doing an essential job that keeps both industry and regulator functioning together to make the island retain its position with focus firmly on the front foot. For further information about the services optimus Group limited provides, please call peter or andy on 755690 or visit www.optimusgrouplimited.com www.guernseychamber.com | OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2010 | CONTACT | 53
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