The US-based Hedge Fund Association, which last year opened a UK chapter in competition with the established Alternative Investment Management Association, has now started a Cayman Islands offshoot. HFA announced this week that the new chapter was a response to demand from Cayman-based hedge fund participants and reflected the importance of the zone as a hub for offshore hedge funds.
Peter Young, who is president of the service provider firm Advanced Fund Administration, will be the inaugural president of the Cayman chapter of HFA. Before setting up that company in 2007, Young was the chief operating officer for Citi’s hedge fund business in the Caymans.
He said that apart from overseeing various events and initiatives for the hedge fund participants in the area, he would also be rallying their support for the broader advocacy work of HFA.
An important part of the association’s brief is as a lobbying group to work with governments and regulators in Washington and other key centres.
Both HFA and AIMA now boast an international spread of members including both managers and their service providers as well as fiduciary funds and asset consultants.