The firm says it will now be able to offer an even more sophisticated service to its clients by combining the undoubted benefits of dealing with a Jersey trust company with the attractions of also being at the centre of "onshore" Europe. "Bedell Cristin Trust grew from a well established Jersey law firm, and this expansion marks the next stage in its development", says Bedell Cristin Trust Chairman, Michael Richardson. "It marks a huge step forward for us and shows how the finance industry in Jersey can adapt and flourish - increasingly Jersey firms are opening offices in other jurisdictions to make sure they can deliver the services their clients need, whilst still retaining a firm base here in the Island. Our clients asked us to consider setting up a subsidiary in Geneva, and I'm delighted to be able to deliver for them. Growing the business in this way will help us to make a strong contribution to the future financial prosperity of the Island".

Bedell Cristin Trust Suisse SA is based in the Rue du Rhone, at the heart of Geneva, which is recognised as the European capital of private banking.

"Switzerland is a major banking centre which continues to attract the wealthy private client", says Edward Buckland, a director of Bedell Cristin Trust and Bedell Cristin Trust Suisse SA. "Our new subsidiary will greatly enhance the strength and depth of the services we can provide to our clients in this sector. The demands of international clients tend to cross jurisdictional boundaries, and many want to combine the best that Jersey can offer, with services which can only be found in Europe. Launching a new trust company in Switzerland will enable us to provide an excellent service to meet the needs of those clients."

In November 2003, Bedell Cristin Trust opened a subsidiary based in Dublin, called Bedell Cristin Trust Ireland, to provide services to the international securitisation market.

"Bedell Cristin is always looking for ways to improve the service it offers to clients, and these two new subsidiaries are an excellent way of doing that", says Edward Buckland. "Our home base is still firmly in Jersey, but by expanding into Ireland, and now into Switzerland as well, we are making Bedell Cristin stronger as a business, and that can only be a good move for the local industry as a whole."