Faizal Bhana is responsible for developing strategy for Jersey Finance’s engagement in Africa, the Middle East and India. With ROTIMI IGE, he speaks on the activities of the institution in Africa, among other topical issues.
Kindly tell us about your establishment and what your objectives are?
Jersey Finance is a not-for-profit organisation that represents and promotes Jersey, the leading international finance centre (IFC). We work with and support the wealth management strategies of African private clients, while also helping to forge relationships with investors who are shifting their focus to Africa in order to diversify and enhance their portfolios.
Jersey has been a leading IFC for 60 years and, thanks to its forward-thinking approach, is at the forefront of wealth management, funds, capital markets and banking, plus the specialist areas of Islamic finance, fintech, philanthropy and sustainable finance.
As a jurisdiction, we are committed to supporting Africa’s growth potential, and we believe Jersey can play a vital role in sourcing overseas capital securely and efficiently to help support economic growth and job creation across the continent.
Our strategy remains absolutely focused on Africa and, thanks to our targeted marketing activity and extensive events programme, we continue to set ourselves apart among IFCs in key African markets. As such, we are a regular visitor to Africa, coordinating no less than 45 inward trade delegations to South Africa, Kenya, Rwanda and Nigeria in the past five years.
We have a global presence – including through our Dubai International Finance Centre (DIFC) office – and, with the increasingly important role that Dubai plays as a gateway for capital and investment from the East and West into Africa, we are well placed to assist in further enhancing the links between Jersey and Africa. Jersey’s excellent relations with the City of London also mean we can offer a variety of structuring solutions to UK/Africa investments.
As a world-rated finance institution, why the focus on Africa at this time?
Jersey’s relationship with Africa is broad, deep, and based on shared interests. Over many decades, we have built strong connections with Africa by supporting both inbound and outbound investment for private and institutional investors. This relationship is constantly evolving, particularly now in wider areas such as fintech, philanthropy, ESG and impact investing, as well as Shariah finance and alternative fund work.
With almost 60 per-cent of the continent’s population under the age of 25, Africa’s young demographic coupled with exciting developments such as the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, make Africa a highly attractive prospect for inbound investment.
As economies look to recover from the global pandemic and investors look for ways to build up communities and put their money to work responsibly, Jersey’s expertise and wide range of flexible structures can support investors with their sustainable strategies. The Island’s flexible, yet robust, regulator and its expanding network of global connections provide an attractive solution for wealthy individuals wanting to make a positive impact with their money.
From a Shariah finance perspective, Jersey’s regulator (the Jersey Financial Services Commission) regulates Shariah-compliant products in the same way as conventional products, and our member firms have extensive experience in carrying out Shariah-compliant investments and structures. This ranges from Islamic private wealth management, corporate SPVs and Sukuk structures, to Islamic asset and fund domiciliation.
Furthermore, a new dynamic class of African investors is also emerging, powered by this growth and supported by digital innovation and an increasing reliance on technology – not only across the financial services industry, but also more generally. As this emerging generation becomes more global and sophisticated, they are turning to reputable and experienced jurisdictions, like Jersey, who can bring an international element and enable outbound investment into new markets and sectors such as fintech, impact investing, and alternative assets.
As many of these African businesses look to scale up and become regional, continental and global players, Jersey provides the natural choice for a jurisdiction to partner with that can support these businesses in achieving their global ambitions.
Africa is a vast continent with a remarkable growth story, and through Jersey’s existing credentials, we are proud to support this growing economy to bring stability, opportunity and a clear path to a prosperous future.
Wealth creation across board is still a far cry in emerging markets like Africa, and Nigeria specifically. What must the continent of Africa and countries like Nigeria do to ensure that wealth is, to a large extent, fairly distributed?
As the promotional body for Jersey’s financial services industry, Jersey Finance would not be able to comment on any potential shortfalls, if any, nor would we be able to comment on any specific local regulatory observations. We can only comment on Jersey’s experiences as an established international finance centre.
From a Jersey perspective, we have worked tirelessly to build Jersey’s reputation as a leader in transparency and information exchange, balanced with confidentiality, within global legal frameworks. As a jurisdiction, we remain focussed and committed to offering a stable, certain and attractive environment for supporting cross-border investment in a well-regulated and transparent manner.
Now, as we emerge from the global pandemic, it will become increasingly important for governments across the continent, and across the globe in general, to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) into their respective economies. To successfully do so, they will need to focus on making their legal, infrastructure and operating business environments more attractive to international investors. Empowering a local skilled workforce and collaborating with jurisdictions with international expertise, such as Jersey, will also help to attract investment. This is even more so the case for emerging markets, particularly in Africa.
An example of this, is the fintech success stories we have already witnessed on the continent. Nigeria and Kenya have both become globally recognised tech hubs, focussing on fintech start-ups and ventures, providing huge opportunities for international collaboration in this area.
What is your value proposition to the region/continent?
As mentioned, Jersey is committed to supporting Africa’s growth potential. We do so through African capital raising, while helping corporate and high value families internationalise and diversify their wealth.
As a true collaborating international partner, Jersey has the knowledge and expertise to support African ambitions on a global stage – both from an inward and outward investment perspective.
Already working with a number of jurisdictions across the continent, we provide a secure platform that supports future outbound African investments, enabling African entrepreneurs to scale up their businesses, grow and internationalise their wealth, and realise their global ambition. At the same time, Jersey encourages institutional investors to put their capital to work, through the Island’s leading international finance centre.
As an organisation, Jersey Finance has an expanding network with a global reach. Our business development teams in Jersey, London, Dubai, New York, Shanghai and Johannesburg are ready to play a vital role in helping the continent to source overseas capital securely and efficiently. As more investors look to deploy capital into Africa, Jersey provides these institutional and private investors with the certainty, stability and substance they are looking for.
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