Leno is very competitive in terms of cost while simultaneously ensuring quality delivery of our services and documentation. However, the actual costs depends on the overall fund profile and the level of complexity involved in the investment strategy.

Since Leno is authorized as an Unrestricted Fund Administrator, we are able to license the fund as soon as all fund documentation has been completed and due diligence is fully in order. This process normally takes 4-6 weeks for SMART Funds operating as private investment funds due to their streamlined structure, whereas it tends to vary for Standard Funds and Professional Funds based on their complexity.

A private investment fund (PIF) is an investment company that does not solicit capital from retail investors or the general public. Investors in a private investment company typically have deep knowledge of the industry as well as investments elsewhere. In The Bahamas, PIF’s are normally licensed as SMART Funds.

Hedge funds are defined by their structure rather than any specific investment method. Oddly, the term ‘hedge fund’ is a misnomer. Not all hedge funds are hedged. Hedge funds invest in any number of strategies regardless of the common term that attempts to corral them. These strategies include investing in asset classes such as stocks, bonds, commodities, currencies, and return enhancing tools such as leverage, derivatives, and arbitrage. Some funds, however, are simply 100% long equity securities. In The Bahamas, hedge funds are normally licensed as Professional Funds.

A mutual fund is a type of financial vehicle made up of a pool of money collected from many investors to invest in securities like stocks, bonds, money market instruments, and other assets.  Mutual funds are operated by professional money managers, who allocate the fund’s assets and attempt to produce capital gains or income for the fund’s investors. A mutual fund’s portfolio is structured and maintained to match the investment objectives stated in its prospectus.

Mutual funds give small or individual investors access to professionally managed portfolios of equities, bonds, and other securities. Each shareholder, therefore, participates proportionally in the gains or losses of the fund. Mutual funds invest in a vast number of securities, and performance is usually tracked as the change in the total market cap of the fund—derived by the aggregating performance of the underlying investments.

In The Bahamas, mutual funds are usually licensed as Standard Funds.

Yes. Hedge Funds are restricted from accepting investors who are not “accredited.”  If you can meet one of the following criteria, you are an accredited investor:

(i) any natural person who had an individual income in excess of $200,000 in each of the two most recent calendar years or joint income with that person’s spouse in excess of $300,000 in each of those years, and has a reasonable expectation of reaching the same income level in the current calendar year;
(ii) any trust with total assets in excess of $5,000,000 where a licensed trustee or investment manager is responsible for investment decisions;
(iii) any entity with net assets in excess of $5,000,000 which has appointed a licensed investment manager to make investment decisions on its behalf;
(iv) any licensed bank or trust company whether acting in its individual or fiduciary capacity;
(v) any registered broker dealer in a prescribed jurisdiction;
(vi) any licensed insurance company;
(vii) any pension fund where a registered investment manager has been appointed to manage the fund’s assets;
(viii) an institutional investor or a financial institution; or
(ix) a natural person with a net worth of two hundred thousand dollars ($200,000.00) or more who can evidence that they have the expertise, experience and knowledge with respect to making their own investment decisions.

The Fund Administrator plays an integral role in maintaining the operations, reporting obligations, trade settlement, investor relations and regulatory compliance of an investment fund.

Click here to read about Leno’s Investment Fund Administration Services.

In broad terms, the board oversees the management and operations of the fund on behalf of the fund’s investors. Directors also have significant and specific responsibilities under the Investment Funds Act, 2019. Among other things, they oversee the performance of the fund, approve the fees paid to the investment adviser for its services, and oversee the fund’s compliance program. A fund director’s role is to provide oversight and not to be involved in day-to-day investment management or operations.

The Investment Manager will decide periodically on the investments of the fund, evaluate investments and review its performance. In addition, the Investment Manager will periodically evaluate its own selection criteria and generally monitor regulatory, economic and securities market developments and gauge the impact on the fund’s existing asset deployment, enacting changes as appropriate. The Investment Manager is granted full discretion over the manner, the method and timing of investments and transactions of the investment fund.

The fund’s auditor reviews the fund’s financial statements and records at the end of its financial year end and issues a report confirming whether or not the fund’s financial statements fairly represent in all material aspects the true financial situation of the fund and its investments and that they are prepared in accordance with globally accepted International Financial Reporting Standards.

Contact funds@lenobahamas.com or click here to provide some basic information and one of our fund services professionals with contact you.