US fund manager latest arrival

US investment adviser Marketfield Asset Management has added to the gradual rise in international fund managers re-domiciling products to Ireland since the introduction last year of new laws governing alternative investment funds in Europe.

The New York-based firm has appointed the Irish-based fund management division of international financial services firm State Street to manage its new Marketfield Dublin Fund, one of a number expected to be established here under the new EU governance laws.

The EU introduced new regulatory rules for the European hedge and private equity funds market — which, up until last year, did not fall under the same rules as mutual and pension funds — via the alternative investment fund managers’ directive last July.

With more than 40% of global hedge funds serviced here — qualifying it as the largest administration centre in the world — Ireland is viewed as a natural choice for alternative investment funds and implemented the directive ahead of schedule early last year.

Marketfield, which manages around $22bn (€16bn) in assets, said it looked to Europe and Ireland for the new home of its fund (previously the fund was a Cayman Islands registered vehicle) because of this region’s strong regulatory framework.

“Our decision to re-domicile our fund to Europe, under the new alternative investment fund managers’ directive regime was consistent with our mission to provide a liquid transparent portfolio that operates in a widely respected regulatory environment,” said Marketfield’s chairman and CEO, Michael Shaoul.

State Street (Ireland) will provide Marketfield with a number of services — regulatory reporting on assets, risk management, liquidity monitoring, among them — and said it has a strong pipeline of business in the area of converting legacy product into alternative investment fund managers’ directive -compliant product.