The $130m fund (£87m, €115m) was previously domiciled in Mauritius and focuses on the physical trading of commodities, including secured arbitraged deals in Africa, Latin America, Asia, and the Middle East.
The fund returned 21% in 2014 in an environment of falling prices and a slowdown in the Chinese economy, and has generated absolute returns since it launched four years ago.
Conor McGrath, director at Straffan Asset Management which is the fund’s investment adviser, said this decision was influenced by the Cayman Island’s cooperation agreements with the majority of the regulators in the EU.
In addition to this, the fund – which will no longer be subject to Mauritius’ 3% tax rate – will now be expected to benefit from the Cayman Island’s tax-free status, therefore generating higher returns.
McGrath pointed out that even if the laws were to change, the government has sought to protect companies by ensuring they would be exempt from paying tax for up to 20 years.
Investors retain exactly the same unit holding and value if they choose to relocate.
Currently the minimum investment is $100,000, up from the Mauritius fund’s $10,000. However, this is expected to reduce back down to $10,000 once the fund has been listed on the Cayman CSX (Stock Exchange).
The fund’s custodian bank is now Malta-based firm, Sparkasse, which is part of the multinational Austrian Savings Banks and Erste Bank Group.
