CLASS A · FULL BANKING
Class A Banking License
Full banking license: operations within the Cayman Islands and abroad. Only large international banks or their subsidiaries. The most stringent supervisory burden.
Tier-1 banks04 · Regulator: CIMA
Banking, insurance
and investment
CIMA licenses.
The Cayman Islands is No. 2 in the world for captive insurance and No. 1 for healthcare captives. A full set of licensing regimes: Banking Class A/B, Insurance Class A/B/C/D, SIBA, Trust full/restricted, Money Services Business, Fund Administrator.
Banking Licenses
Banking regime
under Banks & Trust Companies Act
CIMA issues three categories of banking licenses — from a fully functional A-license for retail banks to Restricted B for niche, corporate and family-banking structures.
CLASS B · OFFSHORE
Class B Banking License
Offshore banking activity only — without accepting deposits from Cayman Islands residents. Suitable for private banking of high-net-worth clients, corporate banks and group treasury operations.
Offshore bankingRESTRICTED CLASS B
Restricted Class B
Banking for a strictly limited list of clients approved by CIMA. Family banks, in-house treasury holdings. Minimum capital — just CI$ 20,000.
Family / TreasuryBanking · key requirements
- Class A · Min. paid-up capital
- CI$ 400,000 (~US$ 480,000)
- Class B · Min. paid-up capital
- CI$ 400,000 (~US$ 480,000)
- Restricted B · Min. capital
- CI$ 20,000 (~US$ 24,000)
- Capital adequacy ratio
- 12% (subsidiaries) · 15% (private)
- Minimum directors
- 2 (CIMA fit & proper)
- Directors' experience
- 5+ years senior banking
- Local office and persistent staff
- Required
- Annual fees
- from CI$ 35,000 to CI$ 120,000
Insurance Licenses
Insurance regime —
No. 2 in the world for captives
Under the Insurance Act, CIMA issues four classes of insurance license. The Cayman Islands is the world's second domicile for captive insurance and the first for healthcare captives.
CLASS A · DOMESTIC
Class A · Domestic Insurer
Insurance within the Cayman Islands or limited reinsurance approved by CIMA. Local insurance companies.
CLASS B · CAPTIVE
Class B · Captive Insurance
The main category: 95%/50%/<50% of net insurance premiums from related business. A pure captive insurer (95%+) — for a single parent company. An industry or group captive insurer — for an industry.
CLASS C · ILS
Class C · Insurance-Linked Securities
Catastrophe bonds, insurance-linked securities structures, fully collateralised reinsurance. Liabilities are limited to funding sources (bonds, contracts for differences). A growing segment.
CLASS D · REINSURER
Class D · Reinsurer
A full-fledged reinsurance license. For large international reinsurers. A separate capital limit and solvency requirements under the CIMA Capital & Solvency Regulations.
AGENT / BROKER
Insurance Agent / Broker
A license for intermediaries: insurance agent (one general + one long-term life insurer), insurance broker (any contracts). They do not carry the insurance risk themselves.
INSURANCE MANAGER
Insurance Manager
A mandatory local manager for all Class B/C/D captive insurers. Handles capital management, regulatory compliance and reporting. The link to CIMA.
Captive insurance statistics
The Caymans — the leading
domicile for healthcare captives
Healthcare is the largest class among Cayman captives, the second is workers' compensation. The majority of companies are from the US (60%+), followed by Latin America and the Caribbean. The average premium saving when setting up a captive is 20–35%.
Insurance · capital requirements
- Class A · MCR
- CI$ 100,000 — 200,000
- Class B (i) · pure captive
- CI$ 100,000
- Class B (ii) · group captive
- CI$ 150,000
- Class B (iii) · open market
- CI$ 200,000
- Class C · ILS
- CI$ 500 (collateralised)
- Class D · reinsurer
- CI$ 50 million+
- Application processing
- 3–6 months
- Annual filing
- January 15 (renewal)
SIBA · Securities Investment Business
Securities Investment
Business Act
A SIBA license is required for those who provide services involving securities (including security tokens) as a broker, dealer, manager or advisor. The regulator is CIMA — a regime separate from VASP.
Securities Broker
Intermediation in securities transactions. Receiving and transmitting client orders. No principal and no position risk.
Securities Dealer
Trading in its own name and for its own account. Transactions as principal, maintaining quotes, trading on its own capital. Capital adequacy requirements are stricter than for a broker.
Investment Manager
Managing client portfolios on a discretionary basis. The most common SIBA category. Hedge fund managers, asset managers.
Investment Advisor
Paid advice on securities. Without the right to make decisions independently. For private wealth management, family offices and automated advisory services.
Registered Person Filing
A simplified regime for managers whose clients are qualified investors or high-net-worth individuals.
Trust Licenses
Trust licenses
CIMA
Under the Banks & Trust Companies Act, any company acting as a trustee, executor or administrator must hold a Trust License. CIMA distinguishes between Full and Restricted regimes plus PTC registration.
FULL TRUST
Full Trust License
The right to act as a trustee for any clients. Trust companies. Minimum capital CI$ 400,000. Full CIMA supervision.
RESTRICTED TRUST
Restricted Trust License
Trust services only for a pre-approved list of clients. Minimum capital CI$ 20,000. Family trustees, in-house structures.
PTC REGISTRATION
Private Trust Company
Registration with CIMA without a full license for PTCs conducting only "connected trust business" (single-family trusts). More accessible and faster.
Other licenses
Money Services
and Fund Administrator
Money Services Business
Money transfer, currency exchange, prepaid cards. Under the Money Services Act. For payment companies, remittance providers, EMI analogues. Min capital CI$ 100,000.
Fund Administrator
NAV calculations, investor register, AML/KYC support for funds. Full and Restricted licenses. One of the few licensed fintech segments.
Corporate Services Provider
Companies Management Act. Registration and support of companies (CSP), nominee services, registered office. Any firm providing incorporation services.
Director Registration
A separate regime for the registration and licensing of directors of regulated investment funds. All individuals holding a director position in such funds must be registered or licensed by CIMA. It does not apply to banks and insurance companies — there, director candidates are approved when the company itself is licensed.
Forex Business
Falls under the securities law (SIBA) or the money services law (MSB). Brokers and dealers in the foreign exchange market — under SIBA with capital requirements. Money transfers in foreign currency — under MSB.
Which license do you need?
Get the right answer
Describe your business model — we will determine which license / combination of licenses is suitable and provide an estimate of capital, time and costs.