Captives leadership insulated Guernsey from Covid shock, meeting hears

Captives have helped Guernsey’s economy pull ahead of its neighbour Jersey in the recovery from Covid, according to Lyndon Trott, chairman of industry promotional agency Guernsey Finance.

According to the  Guernsey Press, Trott said that an earlier exit from lockdown and a more diverse finance industry had offered protection to the island. It helps explain why Guernsey’s economy shrank by 3% in 2020 while Jersey’s fell 9.2% – the biggest since records began.

“Guernsey’s economic performance was very impressive. Jersey’s was bad, if not worse than the UK’s,” EY ITEM Club senior economic advisor Martin Beck told a meeting including Trott.

Trott added that Guernsey had not required or received any support from the state and attributed its success to a lower reliance on banking.

“It is also fair to say that Guernsey’s financial services sector is more diverse generally, with the extra leg of a developed insurance sector assisting us in leading the way as the largest European domicile for captive insurance vehicles and a growing pensions market,” he said.

“‘Lastly, we emerged from lockdown earlier, and returned to business as usual faster, and I believe that contributed materially to our economic performance.”