GUERNSEY: More financial support wanted for Guernsey finance sector

As published on: bbcnews.co.uk, Monday 19 June, 2023.

Financial support for Guernsey's finance sector is needed to sustain its future, a member of the island's Chamber of Commerce has said.

The Committee for Economic Development (CED) has asked for £1m more every year from mid 2024 to mid 2027.

The States of Guernsey currently provides an annual baseline grant of £1.5m to the sector.

CED said more money would enable "diversification into green and sustainable markets". 

As part of the Government work plan for 2023-2025, CED recommended the States Assembly "continue to invest in the promotion and development of the Island's finance sector" through "providing continued additional funding to Guernsey Finance".

Policy and Resources Committee said CED had "key performance indicators in place with Guernsey Finance" and was "meeting its officers regularly to ensure value is realised for taxpayers".

Stephen Rouxel, finance lead at the Chamber of Commerce, said the money was needed for Guernsey to be competitive in new markets.

He said: "The finance sector consistently needs to turn over new business so it needs to access new client bases, some finance businesses equate it as 20% new business every year.

"At the moment that's achievable, but to ensure that all those businesses can consistently get new business coming through the door we need to ensure that Guernsey as a whole is well recognised."

Lyndon Trott, chairman of Guernsey Finance, said if it could not guarantee more money, it could cause considerable damage to the island's financial industry.

"You don't have to be particularly clever to see immediately that financial services is the primary economic driver of Guernsey's economy, so I genuinely anticipate the States looking favourably upon this request in the knowledge that they really have had quite a good bang for their buck."