Guernsey has been named best International Finance Centre (IFC) at the Wealthbriefing European Awards 2015.
The announcement was made last Thursday [30 April] during a ceremony at the Guildhall in the City of London. The evening represented the third annual European awards ceremony hosted by the private wealth management trade publication Wealthbriefing, which is part of ClearView Financial Media.
Guernsey beat the other finalist, Jersey, in the best IFC category. The award was collected on behalf of Guernsey International Finance Centre by Joanne Seal, Group Partner at Collas Crill.
Presenting the awards, Channel 5's Emma Crosby told the audience that the award excited much debate among the judges but they ultimately settled on Guernsey as their winner, not least because it has been one of the first to commit to the OECD's Common Reporting Standard (CRS) and for its involvement in combatting global tax evasion.
In addition, Guernsey's strategy of expanding its global presence – it was the first IFC to open an office in Shanghai and is now also placing greater focus on South America and South Africa – also attracted the approval of the judging panel.
Dominic Wheatley, Chief Executive of Guernsey Finance, said: "I am delighted that Guernsey has won this award. It is extremely satisfying to see that the judges recognised the way in which we are positioning ourselves within the mainstream of international finance through our commitment to global standards and international cooperation and compliance.
"This award is testament to the hard work being undertaken by government, industry, regulator and Guernsey Finance to ensure that the Island is well placed to continue to attract business in the future. It is clear that the judges also liked our plans for a more global focus going forward and the recent recruitment of Kate Clouston as our first International Business Development Director is the latest milestone along that pathway."
For more information about Guernsey's finance industry please visit www.guernseyfinance.com.
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