Butterfield is to acquire Legis Group’s Guernsey-based trust and corporate services business, subject to regulatory and other approvals.
The acquisition is expected to be completed during the first quarter of 2014.
Legis Group’s trust and corporate services business provides trust and company administration services to private clients and institutions. Butterfield also provides a wide range of trust and fiduciary services in Guernsey, as well as private client, institutional custody and administered banking services.
Bob Moore (pictured), executive vice president and head of group trust at Butterfield, says: “Legis is a high quality, well-managed trust business with highly-qualified employees who are respected within the industry for their expertise and professionalism. We are very pleased to have them join the Butterfield team.
“The acquisition of Legis Group’s Guernsey trust operation adds further scale to Butterfield’s international trust business, and adds to the strength and depth of our specialist trust team internationally.”
Stuart Platt-Ransom, chairman and chief executive officer of the Legis Group, says: “This is good news for Legis’ trust clients and the employees who serve them. Butterfield has more than 70 years of experience in offshore trust administration and a first-class reputation in the industry. Butterfield shares our philosophy of relationship-led services and the scope and scale of the combined operations of Legis and Butterfield will provide significant benefits to clients.
“These will include a broader suite of fiduciary solutions, additional resources and multi-jurisdictional service delivery, positioning Butterfield as the premier partner in fiduciary services meeting the needs both of private clients and institutions. Our clients will continue to deal with their familiar Legis contacts.”
Butterfield Group’s trust network comprises five separately incorporated trust companies in key financial jurisdictions: The Bahamas, Bermuda, the Cayman Islands, Guernsey and Switzerland. In addition, Butterfield provides private banking and asset management services in London and a full range of community banking and wealth management services in Bermuda and the Cayman Islands.
The Legis Group has been established for more than 30 years and was acquired by the management team in 2011. It will now focus its energies on reinforcing and further growing its fund administration and tax advisory services from its headquarters in Guernsey, where it continues to employ more than 50 people.
