The Bahrain Monetary Agency (BMA) has granted a licence to the Quorum Trust Group to establish a subsidiary in Bahrain.
The Bahrain venture, which will operate under the name Ohad Trusts Corporate and Financial Services, will offer trust, trustee and related services as well as financial ancillary services.
Quorum Trust Group is headquartered in Jersey, Channel Islands. It specializes in trust and corporate services for private and institutional clients. It also advises on wealth structuring solutions to families and private corporations. Quorum is owned by the partners of Carey Olsen, the largest law firm in the Channel Islands, which also owns Dominion Corporate Services, a fund administration company.
“The BMA welcomes Quorum Trust Group to Bahrain,” said Mr. Ahmed Al Bassam, Director, Licensing & Policy, at the BMA.
Ohad Trusts will be the first trust related services institution to be established in the Middle East region, he said.
The BMA has finalized Bahrain’s and the Middle East region’s first Trust Law, to govern the important and growing business of trust related and custodian services, said Mr. Al Bassam. The draft law, which has already secured Cabinet approval, is currently awaiting approval from Parliament.
He also pointed out that BMA and the Financial Services Commission (FSC) of Jersey have in place a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which provides a framework for cooperation between the two institutions in a number of areas of financial services, including trust services.
“The BMA is committed to maintaining its leadership in developing regulation and providing an appropriate environment for the evolving needs of the financial services industry,” he said.
Ohad Trusts will focus on trust services, including Shari’a-compliant trusts, as well as third party fund administration services, including management of custodian services.
Mr. Stefan Cnoops, Director of the Quorum Trust Group and Managing Director of Ohad Trusts, said Quorum and Dominion have been offering trust, corporate, fund administration and related services in the Middle East region from their offices in Jersey. However, going forward, the business potential in the region necessitates an on-ground presence.
“The Middle East is one of the most attractive geographical areas to do business in,” he said. The substantial wealth available, the rapidly growing financial services sector, including the growth in Islamic banking activity, and the growing requirement for sophisticated financial products are creating substantial opportunities for the group’s further growth in the region.
“Bahrain, as the foremost jurisdiction for financial services in the Middle East, is the place of choice for expanding our operations in the region,” said Mr. Cnoops.
“We wish to bring to Bahrain the expertise we have built up in Jersey and to establish a fully operational unit in the Kingdom.”
Ohad will be located in the Bahrain Financial Harbour, once the US$1.3 billion financial business park, currently under construction along the Manama seafront, becomes available.
