BERMUDA can expect continuing growth in investment funds domiciled here, Finance Minister Paula Cox said yesterday.

After her Ministry this week struck a deal with Swiss tax authorities that will effectively put Bermuda funds out of the scope of the European Union Directive on Taxation of Savings Income, Ms Cox was full of optimism for the sector.

And she said it was a sector that could offer increased job opportunities for Bermudians, as well as increased depth and diversity for Bermuda's financial services industry. "The fund industry has many different facets. One sector of the industry focuses on the establishment of Bermuda registered funds and is often managed by the law firms.

"Local law firms have attracted young lawyers to join these departments and it is expected that this sector will grow providing more work through the law firms.

"Fund administration and related services is the second area which has shown great growth in Bermuda. Five of the largest fund administrators in the world now have offices in Bermuda.

"Over the past ten years since this sector was opened up to international businesses and the sector has grown. There are over 40 administrators on the Island both local and domestic.

"The offices vary in size and Bermuda provides a good variety of services in this area. This sector provides good job opportunities for Bermudians and with more specialised training in this area will enable more Bermudians to participate.

"Bermuda benefits from diversification of services and fund administration is growing steadily as one of the Bermuda's key financial services sectors.

"The third area is fund management or investment management. There has been growth in this sector however it is more difficult to compete with established centres such as New York or London.

"At the investment forum sponsored by the Ministry of Finance in September 2005, the Ministry consulted with all the investment providers presently operating in Bermuda and there was much discussion about specialised services and niche markets which Bermuda may focus on more directly and attract businesses which are better suited to operate from Bermuda and complement the other areas of this important sector."

She praised her Ministry officials for successful dealings with Switzerland, a non-EU country."From our perspective, this outcome levels the playing field for Bermuda-domiciled funds in a fiercely competitive global arena," Ms Cox said.