THE fund management industry in Guernsey is set for a tough 2012 – but one tinged with optimism.

Challenges of 2011, which saw a marked decline in the number of new funds launched in the latter half of the year, are expected to continue or be replaced with new, equally damaging concerns.

Nationally and internationally, fund managers fear rising regulation as well as the continuing economic and political uncertainty in the eurozone.

But the concerns that dogged the industry over the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive could start to turn and benefit local providers this year.

Stuart Platt-Ransom, pictured, group managing director at Legis Group, said there were indications that private equity funds were moving, or positioning themselves for a move, to Guernsey in response to uncertainty created by the directive.