Since March 2010, Navigator Consulting Group has been led from London. Changes in the UK regulatory regime on investment advisory services, however, have resulted in a lack of clarity as to whether Navigator must be regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority.
Specifically, we offer advice on due diligence, business planning, and corporate fundraising to investors, notably to banks, private equity firms, family offices, angel investors, and venture capital firms. Some projects also concern corporate investments in listed entities, such as a recent hotel privatisation which took place for a UK client in Greece.
We have not been able to receive a satisfactory agent as to whether our provision of the following category of services requires regulation, particularly since most of our projects are outside the UK: investments: dealing in or managing (as a principal or agent), arranging deals, safeguarding and administering, advising
Attempts to seek clarifications from the Financial Conduct Authority have not resolved the issue.
In addition to issues of regulation for our own activities, we have also noted an increasing compliance burden even when we are working as a subcontractor or service provider to regulated companies.
Given this lack of clarity and the increasing costs associated with it, we have decided to move our investment advisory consultancy services to Cyprus.
Navigator has been working in Cyprus since 1996, when we won our first project for the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Since then, we have worked regularly for a range of clients, including the Association of Cyprus Travel Agents and the Cyprus Tourism Organisation and others.
In 2015, we supported the BestInvest Cyprus investment conference, organised by our partner, Successful Business Magazine.
Two of our start-ups, Socama Group and European Consulting Network, are also operating from Cyprus.
Moving to Cyprus will enhance our ability to offer services to clients there and in Greece, as well as clients in other countries. We anticipate setting up a full office in Nicosia or Limassol over the summer.
There will be no changes to ongoing projects, and all client relationships will continue without change.
We look forward to implementing this move, and will be in close contact with our customers and partner network to ensure that all goes well.