The Laven group, founded by Jerome Lussan, CEO, in 2005, is proud to be celebrating its fifth birthday this year.
During the past five years, Laven has expanded from just one firm to a group comprising six different entities with offices in the UK, Switzerland, Luxembourg and the Caribbean. The Laven group, as hedge fund and fund management consultants, now provides services covering regulatory compliance, law, tax, operational due diligence and corporate services.
The recent years have welcomed considerable growth within the group overseeing the successful launch of offices in Geneva in 2007, Barbados in 2008 and Luxembourg in 2009. With the opening of the global offices and the gradual development of services, we have constantly driven to meet client demands and quickly reacted to changes in the industry. We foresaw demand for better regulation; developing FSA, FINMA and CSSF dedicated units, anticipating the growth of UCITS III in Luxembourg and the move of managers out of the UK by notably setting up in Switzerland. We have become acclaimed for our proactivity and practical advice – principles which are instilled within the firm and the members of our team.
During the last five years Laven has won the Best Regulatory Advisory Firm award at the HFM Week Service Provider Awards in 2009 and also acquired the much coveted ISO 9001:2008 certificate for its Independent Process of Operational Due Diligence (IPODD). The ISO recognition acknowledges that Laven’s IPODD services follow the highest standards of review and analysis as well as maintaining an exemplary level of customer satisfaction.
Furthermore Laven’s frequent appearances on the media circuit have enabled the firm to participate in a diverse range of programmes, for example as FSA experts on Bloomberg TV and on Resonance FM’s “N@ked Short Club”, as well as writing for the leading financial press. Having regularly composed articles for the FT, the Economist and City A.M we are currently in the process of writing a book on operational due diligence which is due to be published later this year. Other Laven publications include an array of research papers in addition to contributions to books and newsletters. Most recently we launched a monthly update on the proposed Alternative Investment Managers (AIFM) Directive, which has been well received by the industry and has been picked up by the press for its useful content.
Laven has continued to participate in a wide range of conferences across the globe, the most recent ones being the Redomiciliation of Managers conference which took place at the beginning of 2010 in London, Geneva and Luxembourg, as well as the Hedge Fund Regulation, Reporting & Controls conference in February 2010. We have also organised a variety of our own breakfast seminars, occasionally collaborating with established industry players such as PricewaterhouseCoopers and Lobard Odier Darier Hentsch & Cie.
Furthermore, Laven’s strong connections with the financial regulatory bodies (the FSA, CSSF, AMF, FINMA, MAS, and SEC) have helped make the firm one of the leading consultancies with regards to issues affecting asset managers and other financial institutions. Laven Advisors LLP is a member of the Alternative Investment Managers Association (AIMA) and Jerome Lussan, CEO of the Laven group, is also a member of the International Tax Planning Association (ITPA).
With the next five years in view, we look forward to continuing to stay in touch with our clientele and friends maintaining our dialogue with industry professionals and bodies as well as with government officials, anticipating changes in financial services and providing the asset management industry with solutions of the highest of quality.
