PrimeFundSolutions has received approval of its Luxembourg licence applications by the Luxembourg regulator CSSF and by the Luxembourg Minister of Finance.

The license allows PrimeFundSolutions to provide banking, custody and fund administration activities to Luxembourg regulated hedge funds and fund of hedge funds.

Erik Jens, chief executive of PrimeFundSolutions, says: “From a strategic perspective, having a local Luxembourg presence is considered essential for PrimeFundSolutions as this will provide us with a strong foundation for future growth in a regulated market and further strengthens our core business around the globe. As a sizeable alternative fund market and a well regulated jurisdiction, Luxembourg has strong potential for growth, particularly as investors seek out onshore locations with stringent controls and proper safeguards in place over the custody of their assets in addition to other commonly used jurisdictions.”

Prior to the nationalisation of the Fortis Group entities in 2008, PrimeFundSolutions had an established operation in Luxembourg providing services to clients under the licence of the former Fortis Bank Luxembourg (now BGL BNP Paribas). PrimeFundSolutions in Luxembourg is a subsidiary of Fortis Bank (Nederland).

PrimeFundSolutions will commence business in Luxembourg as of 1 October 2009 under the leadership of Claude Noesen, who has been appointed managing director. He joined the former Prime Fund Solutions Luxembourg in June 2008 has over 25 years’ experience in the financial services industry, having worked for organisations such as HSBC and its predecessor Bank of Bermuda.

Noesen says: “Being part of a leading global alternative fund service provider such as PrimeFundSolutions is an exciting opportunity. Luxembourg is well placed to benefit from the current trends in the alternative industry and we are confident that those trends will fit perfectly with our scalable state-of-the-art global systems, along with our unique client-facing operating model. PrimeFundSolutions has been a major player in this industry for 40 years and we are fully committed to the continuation of our activities in the long term.”