Cordium, the global compliance consultancy, has launched a 'full service solution' onto the market to help firms comply with the Alternative Investments Fund Managers Directive.

Cordium, the global compliance consultancy, has launched a completely new 'full service solution' onto the market that helps firms comply with the Alternative Investments Fund Managers Directive, which it believes is so far unique in the financial services industry. It is promoting it as a ‘third way’ between a firm doing it completely by itself, and the AIFM-hosting products that have sprung up over the last few months.

As with traditional hosted-AIFM 'solutions', Cordium will set up and run the AIFM for the client (in Malta), taking care of all reporting, risk management and other tasks – all the way down to office stationery and personnel – for a fixed fee. But unlike hosting solutions, the AIFM is fully owned by the client – which means that he/she/it can do what they like with it down the line in terms of development, branding, staffing etc.

Cordium is hoping that this will appeal to any non-EU fund or any British fund management firm that wants an AIFM without the hassle/cost uncertainty involved in setting one up itself. It has a seal of approval from Professor Joe Bannister, the genius who founded Malta's modern financial system, which the Government is hoping will employ one-quarter of the island's workforce by 2020.

Readers may find it interesting to note that Cordium recently absorbed Zodiac Advisory Services, a Maltese compliance consultancy. Its founder, Adam de Domenico, sold both the firm and himself to Cordium in February and is carrying on at the helm. In this month's PDF supplement to our website, to be released shortly, he answers Chris Hamblin's wide-ranging questions about the regulatory set-up in Malta. Anyone interested in the AIFM service should visit www.cordium.com