There are two types of unregulated fund: Unregulated Eligible Investor Funds and Unregulated Exchange Traded Funds. An Unregulated Eligible Investor Fund may be open or closed-ended, and may only be offered to Eligible Investors.

An Unregulated Exchange Traded Fund must be closed-ended and listed on one of the exchanges and markets approved by the JFSC. These include the London Stock Exchange, AIM, the Irish Stock Exchange and the Channel Islands Stock Exchange.

Mourant du Feu & Jeune set up two Unregulated Exchange Traded Funds in the first week of the launch of the new regime in March this year.

 Each fund vehicle is a protected cell created by a Jersey protected cell company which was established to issue structured equity products in the form of preference shares.

Both funds have issued shares that are designed to provide a return linked to the performance of a proprietary market neutral index over a three year period.

The funds are sponsored by one of the world's leading investment banks and administered in Jersey by Mourant & Co. Limited.

 The shares are listed on the Channel Islands Stock Exchange with Mourant Capital Markets Services Limited appointed as listing sponsor.

Unregulated funds are seen as extremely attractive for promoters targeting sophisticated and high net worth investors, according to Mourant.

“The new regime has a lightness of touch and flexibility which is similar, and in some aspects superior to, the equivalent regimes offered by Caribbean and other offshore jurisdictions,” announced Jonathan Rigby, partner at Mourant du Feu & Jeune who, together with senior associate, Michael Williams, was responsible for setting up the first unregulated fund.

“Unregulated funds are generating considerable interest amongst European-based alternative asset managers and are likely to drive further growth in the island’s fund industry,” Mr Rigby added.

Jersey’s continued growth in funds under administration to almost GBP250bn last year has been driven, in large part, by the introduction of expert funds in 2004 and listed funds in 2007.