First fund for an emerging manager, launched in fourteen weeks
A two-person investment team with first commitments from both US taxable and non-US investors, and nothing set up at all.
De situatie
Two portfolio managers leaving a bigger firm had informal commitments from a US university endowment, two US family offices that pay tax, and a European institution. They needed a fund structure that worked for all of them, and a launch date that matched when the endowment allocates money.
- With such a mix of investors, a single fund would have failed one group or another on tax.
- The management company had to be set up where the team actually lived and worked.
- Getting a prime broker (the bank that executes and finances trades) on board, not the regulator, was what decided the timeline.
- It was a new manager's budget, so nothing unnecessary could be built.
There are two feeders because the investors are taxed differently, not because the strategy needs them.
- Subscriptions
- Each investor goes into the feeder that suits how it's taxed; both feeders invest in the master.
- Fees
- Management and performance fees are charged in the feeders and paid to the manager under the investment management agreement (IMA).
- Compliance
- Yearly accounts audited by a CIMA-approved auditor, the fund's annual return, and FATCA and CRS tax reporting through the administrator.
Wat we deden, stap voor stap
- 01Structure fixed in week one
Checked that the mix of investors genuinely needed a master-feeder, rather than assuming it.
- 02Manager entity placed deliberately
Set up the investment manager where the team actually works, keeping Cayman's fund-manager substance test out of the picture.
- 03Documents drafted in parallel
Worked on the offering memorandum, the fund's articles, the management agreement, the subscription forms and the administration agreement at the same time, not one after another.
- 04Prime broker started first
Started the broker sign-up in week two, because we knew that, not the regulator, would be the slowest part.
- 05Directors and auditor engaged
Registered independent directors and appointed a CIMA-approved auditor ahead of registration.
- 06CIMA registration filed
Registered under the Mutual Funds Act once the directors and the auditor were in place.
- The fund launched in fourteen weeks, in time for the endowment's allocation.
- All three types of investor catered for, with nobody ending up in a tax position they didn't intend.
- The management company placed so that no Cayman substance duties arose on it.
- The launch stayed on budget, with no company or service provider added that wasn't needed.
Een softwaregroep onder leiding van de oprichter, met bedrijven in drie landen en zonder holdingmaatschappij erboven, negen weken voordat de verkoop aan een Amerikaanse koper wordt ondertekend.
Een Britse familie die na april 2025 de oude non-dom-regeling verloor en een family office nodig had dat echt vanuit de VAE werkt, terwijl hun Europese vastgoed gewoon inkomsten bleef opleveren.
Een betalingsgroep uit het Midden-Oosten die zakelijke betalingen in de EU wilde aanbieden en een licentie nodig had die in heel Europa bruikbaar is, los van het bestaande moederbedrijf.