Government has agreed to allow Cayman Islands companies put out of business by Hurricane Ivan to set up shop temporarily in Bermuda.

And Government will cut red tape normally associated with setting up a business to allow them to get down to work as soon as possible, it was announced at a Press conference yesterday.

The offer is expected to be taken up by a number of Cayman affiliates or subsidiaries of Bermuda businesses, said Gavin Arton, an executive of the Association of Bermuda International Companies (ABIC).

Mr. Arton said there were a number of ABIC management companies and captive insurance companies and some investment services that had sister companies or knew of companies in similar business in Cayman.

?They were displaced out of their offices. They were washed away,? he said. Government has approved ?a type of setting up and acting as an agent for many people up here for those companies, to form companies here on a temporary basis as well as temporarily importing their own staff to bring into Bermuda on a temporary basis,? he said.

Mr. Arton said the companies would be ?doubling up? with existing companies here.

?I imagine they will be begging and borrowing for empty conference rooms,? Mr. Arton said.

Premier Alex Scott made it clear at a Press conference yesterday that Bermuda was not attempting to pilfer any of Cayman?s international businesses, but the measure was temporary as part of the Hurricane Ivan relief effort.

They will be able to ?carry on their normal business?, he said.

The Premier said Bermuda was not in a position to waive fees payable by the companies. But Government said it would take all of the fees that the Cayman companies would have to pay to set up shop in Bermuda and put them back into the Hurricane Ivan relief fund.

Mr. Arton said the request was made by Bermuda international companies.

?Government has responded, saying yes, and are obviously speeding up the processes. (Government) will provide the return of any fees or duties applicable to that transfer,? he said.

Cayman is one of Bermuda?s major rivals as an offshore financial centre. But many local and exempted companies in Bermuda have subsidiaries in the Caribbean island, including the Bank of Bermuda, Butterfield Bank and Appleby Spurling and Hunter, which merged with a leading Cayman law firm earlier this year.

Many local companies have reported having severe problems getting in touch with their colleagues since Ivan struck.

Cayman officials have said operations of its key financial services sector are expected to resume on Monday.

?The infrastructure of the finance sector is mostly intact, including records and data,? Cayman Gov. Bruce Dinwiddy said in a statement released by the government in London.

?Once we have power back in George Town (the capital), expected by the end of this week, the financial services industry will be back in action,? he said. Mr. Dinwiddy said support and regulatory government agencies such as the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority and Companies Registry would be operational by Monday, and several retail banks were planning to open early next week.