Based in Johannesburg, Cecilia Albertyn (pictured below) has been appointed as business development consultant, to build on the relationship between the two jurisdictions in financial services, the Isle of Man said in a statement. She will also liaise with South African trade associations and businesses to raise the profile of the island and highlight opportunities there.

The relationship between the Isle of Man and South Africa is a longstanding one, with more than 35 South African businesses having operations there. Institutions also operate across both jurisdictions, including Nedbank, Standard Bank, Derivco, Microgaming and Capital International. The island aims to help South African business owners to make their their business international by accessing global markets to expand and grow.

Albertyn has spent the past seven years as vice president for international networks at the British Chamber of Business in South Africa. In that role, she was responsible for strengthening local and international networks and will play a key role in developing business opportunities between the two jurisdictions. Albertyn will be part of the Finance Isle of Man team, an executive agency of the Isle of Man government.

“The Isle of Man already has an excellent trade relationship with South Africa – with trade between our two jurisdictions helping to drive economic growth on both sides. We have long had ambitions to build on this position of strength – Cecilia’s skills and experience mean that she is ideally placed to help us do that,” Michael Crowe, CEO of Finance Isle of Man, said. 

Finance Isle of Man is an executive agency of the Department for Enterprise. It was created to promote and develop the Isle of Man’s financial and professional services industry and ensure its recognition.

See here and here for more coverage about the Isle of Man and businesses operating there.