CONSOLIDATION OF SERVICE PROVIDERS FOR FOORD INTERNATIONAL FUNDS

Foord Asset Management employs different administrators in various jurisdictions to support its offshore investment funds. PAUL CLUER reports on the 2017 initiative to consolidate these service providers.

Foord established the Foord International Trust in 1997 in the well-regulated jurisdiction of Guernsey. In March this year, that fund will celebrate its milestone 20-year track record. In 2012 the group established an investment research office and the Foord Global Equity Fund in the busy global financial centre of Singapore. Foord’s Singapore office now employs 10 staff members.

In 2013, we established Foord Sicav in Luxembourg, Europe’s leading cross-border funds market. The strategies of the Foord International Trust and Foord Global Equity Fund were mirrored in two UCITS-compliant sub-funds of Foord Sicav. Unlike the Guernsey and Singapore funds, these UCITS portfolios are eligible for distribution in all EU markets although for the time being only registered for distribution in Luxembourg, the UK and Switzerland.

The unintended consequence of these developments was that common investors in all three offshore jurisdictions must interface with three different service providers and there is no consolidated investor reporting. We have, therefore, for some time sought a partner capable of jointly administering all four funds across the three jurisdictions.

After extensive due diligence, Foord’s executive team approved the consolidation of all service providers. The Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) is expected to go live on 1 July 2017 as the single custodian bank, transfer agent and fund administrator to all of Foord’s offshore funds. We chose RBC for its position as Canada’s largest bank and a top-ten service provider in Luxembourg, as well as for its operations in Guernsey and Singapore. We look forward to introducing the single interface for investors in all funds, consolidated reporting and best-of-breed service from this leading custodian bank.