News & Events

The Cayman Islands’ liquidation of Saad Investments Company Limited has inched a step closer to finality, with the Grand Court authorising an ‘in-principle’ interim dividend to unsecured creditors despite the fact that the multi-billion dollar proprietary claim asserted by Ahmad Hamad Algosaibi and Brothers Company (“AHAB”) over the entire Saad estate continues to be litigated before the Cayman Courts.

The Economic Substance (Companies and Limited Partnerships) Act, 2018 (the “Act”) was passed on 1 January 2019, introducing economic substance requirements in the British Virgin Islands (“BVI”) for certain BVI legal entities that are not tax "resident" in countries outside the BVI and carry on a “relevant activity” as further specified in the Act.  On 22 April 2019, the International Tax Authority (“ITA”) of the BVI issued a draft Economic Substance Code (the “Code”) to provide guidance and interpretation in respect of the Act (for further information please see our earlier client briefing).

The Data Protection Law, 2017 (the “Law”), currently scheduled to come into force on 30 September 2019, introduces, for the first time in the Cayman Islands, a legislative framework for data protection based on a set of internationally recognised privacy principles.  The Law regulates the processing of all personal data in the Cayman Islands and will impact all entities established in the Cayman Islands, including all investment funds whether or not registered with the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority.  The Law applies irrespective of where personal data is processed and applies to personal data irrespective of individual citizenship or residency. This note focuses on the specific effect of the Law for investment funds.