Maitland operates worldwide IT off Cape Town platform
Premium international wealth management and professional services firm Maitland has confirmed the importance of Cape Town as an offshoring centre by appointing Dr Tim Brown (pictured) as head of information technology for its worldwide operations.
Maitland was founded in Luxembourg in 1976 and has grown to over the years to a firm with more than 600 people, providing legal, fiduciary, asset management and fund administration services from 13 offices across Europe, South Africa and the Caribbean.
Firm-wide, Maitland administers approximately US$70 billion in assets on a direct or fiduciary basis on behalf of international clients and administers US$45 billion in assets on behalf of over 80 international fund management businesses.
Maitland’s global fund administration platform is operated from its Cape Town premises with client support rendered out of Cape Town and Luxembourg. International funds have recognised the benefits of “offshoring” in South Africa, with Maitland’s third-party outsourced fund administration business now 6:1 local:international funds.
Dr Brown, who is well known in the IT industry and was formerly MD of Aqute Business Intelligence, says: “Information technology enables seamless service delivery and communication, making the geographic location irrelevant. Other positive factors such as an aligned time zone and a common language make South Africa well placed to service the UK and European fund management industry but the primary advantage is the availability of skilled resources and a substantially lower cost operating environment.”
Veit Schuhen, COO of Maitland in South Africa, says the firm has worked hard at the “connect” between IT and its business solutions. He says: “Technology is pervasive in the contemporary workplace and all managers need to gain a deeper understanding of IT as a strategic management tool. Dr Brown has expertise in this area and we welcome his high-level appointment to our team.”
Maitland’s fund services division provides comprehensive asset management administration and reporting solutions covering front, middle and back-office functions. The front-office system is fully integrated to the back office and accessed by clients directly. The firm uses SunGard’s front office system, Decalog, and its back-office system, InvestOne, which is a global solution currently used by over 175 mutual fund groups, 16 of the top US banks and 11 of the top 50 world banking companies.
