People-centric growth

People-centric growth

MONEY speaks to Chris Casapinta, country executive Malta and Italy desk leader, at Alter Domus – a financial services company that started off its Malta operations with only three people but which has now been turned into a fully-fledged fund administration and corporate services provider.

Can you give me a brief history of the Alter Domus group in Malta?

With the financial services industry in Malta developing at a fast pace, I saw that there was a place for an international service provider within the local industry. This has resulted in the decision to set up shop in Malta. Together with my colleagues and our head office in Luxembourg, we went through the necessary licencing process in order to be able to commence business in 2011. At that time, the operation was rather lean, with just myself and two other hard-working colleagues. However, by 2012 we had accumulated a number of important clients, which meant that the operational platform and human resources had to be upgraded quickly to meet our clients’ demands.

Over the years, we have continued to attract top clients and we now have the secondlargest Alter Domus office in the EMEA region. We currently employ around 150 experienced professionals and we are growing at a solid double-digit rate.

What kind of services does the company offer?

Alter Domus Malta prides itself in being a fully integrated provider of Fund Administration and Corporate Services, where our wide range of services is being continuously expanded to cater for our clients’ needs. The range of services include Company

Formation and Fund Launch, Corporate Management, Fund Administration, Accounting and Consolidation, Corporate & Legal Compliance, Tax Compliance, Transfer Pricing, Regulatory Services, Liquidation and Depositary Services. Over the last year we have also launched a number of additional services, including:

Co-sourcing services – where our own staff occupy posts at our clients’ businesses in the short or medium term; This service came across very well with our clients as we have the opportunity to send our well-trained staff to the client site within days of their request to fill in staff shortages. Middle-office services – we have moved from offering purely back-office support in the fund management industry to a more value-added middle-office function, a service which puts us closer to our asset manager clients; Capital markets – we have been seeing an encouraging number of capital markets’ transactions locally, which require assistance in terms of setting up Special- Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) and listing in the various European stock exchanges.

Over the last year we have also focused on improving our service offering in the field of wealth administration for private clients.

Specifically within the area of wealth administration, what makes the

combination of Alter Domus and Malta the ideal choice for High Net-Worth Individuals (HNWIs)?

I believe that as private clients and HNWIs look to break away from the status quo, Malta has a unique opportunity to consolidate its position as a private wealth administration hub of tomorrow. While jurisdictions such as Luxembourg, Ireland and the Channel Islands target institutional investors, Malta is filling the gap as a unique and flexible private wealth administration hub for family offices and private wealth structuring.

In the last 15 years, due to changes in the local and regulatory frameworks, there have been significant changes in the way wealth is structured in order to have more transparent wealth management and administration structures.

Malta offers a wide range of investment vehicles, supported by a robust legal infrastructure and regulatory framework. As the international financial market becomes ever more competitive, flexibility has been the key to Malta’s success. An example of such flexibility is the fact that Malta is one of the few jurisdictions catering for both trusts and foundations. Such flexibility has proven attractive to both private clients and HNWIs.

The jurisdiction also offers a number of fund options, such as alternative funds, which are free of investment restrictions and therefore attractive to high net worth investors. Cost optimisation and a highly reputable EU location are also equally important drivers. Malta offers a highly regulated, highly respected, sophisticated EU environment, and the country is becoming a popular wealth management jurisdiction for people from across the world.

At Alter Domus Malta, we are able to coordinate with our extensive global footprint of offices and specialists in segments such as private equity, real estate and alternative assets as required by our clients, providing a seamless, vertically integrated approach as previously outlined. Such expertise truly adds value to our clients. We are also proud that a large and increasing number of private clients hailing from 45 different countries are trusting us with the administration of their wealth. I strongly believe we are truly geared towards offering a one-stop solution for our private clients.

We have also recognised the challenging and growing world of managing different asset classes, and so through our comprehensive, insightful, personalised and secure data information methods we have developed a Wealth Administration Solution platform to help private clients have a consolidated view of how we are administering their assets.

What makes Alter Domus Malta different from other companies in its field?

Alter Domus Malta has several unique characteristics which sets it apart from its competitors, namely:

Our Integrated Service, offering both a vertical (range of services, from fund administration through to corporate services) and horizontal (29 international locations and a single global platform) approach. We have a proven and strong track record in the administration of funds investing in alternative assets, as well as underlying subsidiaries/asset-holding vehicles throughout the key jurisdictions in Europe, US and Asia-Pacific. This gives us a unique position in today’s competitive landscape.

Our dedication to the Private Equity and Real Estate market (and associated strategies

such as debt, infrastructure, etc.) as well as corporates and multinationals. This includes ensuring we have a strong understanding of each client we serve, that we tailor our services accordingly to ensure efficiency and to help optimise our client’s day to day operations.

Our team of around 150 staff at our Malta office, with backgrounds and experience ranging from investment management, Big Four accountancy to specialist fund administration provision. We also believe that in addition to their experience, it is important that stability and motivation are key features of a successful business, so we offer our staff a range of opportunities, including secondments, to foster motivation and team spirit.

Ambitious growth plan. 2018 clearly demonstrated that not just Alter Domus Malta, but the entire Alter Domus group has an ambitious plan, which is being executed at a dynamic pace. The acquisition of Cortland Capital Market Services LLC in the first quarter of this year clearly demonstrates the group’s intent and ambition to expand further within the US market.

What is the short and long-term outlook for Alter Domus?

We are consistently seeing a healthy pipeline of prospective clients, so, I would say generally the outlook is positive. However, like any other industry we face challenges. Particularly in Malta, we do struggle to source potential recruits that have specialist knowledge in particular fields of finance. We also need to find solutions around the limited banking infrastructure on the island.

On a more global level, our industry is constantly affected with the fast regulatory and fiscal framework. We therefore need to be nimble and be proactive to manage operational processes to reflect such changes in the industry. Such changes in operational processes are being supported through significant investment in technology that results in efficiency gains and security, thus more added value to our clients.