Governance & Regulation

Rising Expectations, Real Consequences: The New Reality for Independent Directors There was a time when being named as an independent director of a Cayman Islands fund was considered a relatively straightforward undertaking. You brought an outside perspective, attended board meetings, reviewed materials prepared by others, and applied a degree of professional judgement to the decisions placed before you. The role carried prestige, and for many it carried limited personal risk

The Common Reporting Standard has been part of the Cayman compliance environment since 2016. For most financial institutions, it has become a routine obligation. The OECD's first major update since inception changes that. CRS 2.0 is now in force, bringing expanded scope, tighter data requirements, new deadlines, and a sharper enforcement regime — and for fund directors and boards, the window to prepare is shorter than it may appear.

CIMA's first Corporate Governance Thematic Review under its enforceable Rule on Corporate Governance found real gaps across the industry — from weak conflicts of interest protocols to absent succession plans and inadequate board minutes. For fund managers operating in the Cayman Islands, the findings serve as a direct prompt to examine current practices. With CIMA expected to intensify scrutiny in 2026, boards that have yet to act are running out of time to do so on their own

CIMA's first Corporate Governance Thematic Review under its enforceable Rule on Corporate Governance found real gaps across the industry — from weak conflicts of interest protocols to absent succession plans and inadequate board minutes. For fund managers operating in the Cayman Islands, the findings serve as a direct prompt to examine current practices. With CIMA expected to intensify scrutiny in 2026, boards that have yet to act are running out of time to do so on their own