For the funds sector, as for any sector of the economy, tackling COVID-19 poses profound and deep challenges, the likes of which the industry has never seen before. If there is a silver lining, however, it is that this industry has become very adaptable and resilient in recent years. It has already absorbed and managed a great deal of change in recent years – it has the talent, structures and relationships in place to manage more.

In fact, the funds industry in Cayman has recently digested another period of significant change – largely on the regulatory front. In 2019 and through the start of 2020 the industry absorbed a number of key changes including the Private Funds Act, economic substance guidelines from the EU, further changes to anti money-laundering (AML) rules, the new Data Protection Law and the Securities Investment Business Licensing Law.

And all this while also grappling with the challenge of new technology and asset classes shifting the nature of the investment environment, pressure on fees and the structure of funds and fund managers.

So, the industry had a lot of think about even before COVID-19. The good news, is, however, that despite so much change, the industry remained in good health and the mood of its executive very bullish. As it confronts future challenges, the sector will need to be agile and resilient, adaptable and reliable – but it is better positioned than any other domicile to do exactly that.