Vanessa Gilman, Acc. Dir., CAIA, MCSI
Independent Director
Vanessa Gilman is an Independent Director with Waystone based in the Cayman office. Vanessa offers extensive regulatory knowledge as a director to hedge funds, private funds, fund of funds, general partners, and special purpose vehicles that employ various investment strategies. An Accredited Director, Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst and Member of the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment, Vanessa has over 20 years of diverse experience in offshore financial services.
A regulatory specialist, Vanessa was Senior Analyst with the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA) where she supervised hedge funds, fund administrators and securities investment business including investment managers. She oversaw the E-Reporting and Inspection units of the Investment and Securities Division, and enhanced Cayman legislation, regulatory policies, rules, and guidance through several working groups.
In past roles, Vanessa served as Senior Manager of HSBC Securities Services where she ensured adherence to Cayman laws and regulations by the fund services teams in Cayman, Bermuda, the Asia Pacific and Europe. She later served at MaplesFS as independent director to various hedge funds and as relationship manager to a portfolio of investment vehicles. During her time at RBC Wealth Management, Vanessa managed the funds team and provided director and trustee services to leading international asset managers in the United States, Europe, Asia and Brazil. Earlier in her career, Vanessa served as a fund administrator with Walkers SPV, and as a fund accountant with Goldman Sachs.
Vanessa is a Registered Director with CIMA, member of the Cayman Islands Directors Association, Accredited Director, Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst, and Member of the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment. Vanessa holds a Bachelor’s Degree in accounting and a Master’s Degree in behavioral sciences.
Skills and experience
- Representing fund-of-fund structure investing through various sub-managers across Europe, Asia, and the US with various investment approaches and styles, sponsored by a UK-based asset manager with US$14.4Bn of AUM.
- Representing various hedge funds employing an activist investment strategy by investing in public and private securities of US public companies, sponsored by a US investment advisor with over US$5Bn of AUM.
- Representing master-feeder hedge funds employing a global and opportunistic long/short strategy primarily through investments in distressed debt, value equities and event equities, sponsored by US investment manager with US$4.3Bn of AUM.
- Representing master-feeder hedge funds applying a concentrated long/short equity strategy investing primarily in North America and developed markets, sponsored by a US investment manager with US$3.3Bn of AUM.
- Representing master-feeder structures available to non-US and US tax exempt investors, employing a multi-strategy approach, sponsored by a US investment manager with US$2.4Bn of AUM.
- Advisory committee representation to hedge funds in connection with affiliated transactions of funds sponsored by investment managers with over US$1Bn of AUM.
- Representing Special Purpose Vehicles invested in a portfolio of asset-backed securitization credit investments including residential mortgage-backed securities, sponsored by a leading US renewable energy and energy efficiency financing provider of US$6.3Bn of financing.
- Representing private equity fund structure investing in Japanese middle capital private companies, sponsored by a Singapore-based asset manager with ¥78Bn of AUM.
- Representing various funds employing global macro, fixed income arbitrage, statistical arbitrage, and short bias investment strategies.
- Representing funds investing in real estate, health care, energy, and mining sectors across the globe.
- Hedge funds
- Private equity funds
- Fund of funds
- Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs)
- Regulatory compliance
- Royal Bank of Canada, Wealth Management, Senior Corporate Officer, 2013 – 2018
- Maples FS, Assistant Vice President (Fiduciary), 2011 – 2013
- HSBC Securities Services, Senior Manager, 2010
- Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA), Senior Analyst (Investments and Securities), 2007 – 2010
- Walkers SPV Limited, Mutual Fund Administrator, 2004 – 2005
- Goldman Sachs (Cayman) Trust Limited, Fund Accountant, 1998 – 2004
- Registered Director, Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA)
- Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst Association (CAIAA)
- Chartered Governance Institute of Canada (CGIC)
- Cayman Islands Directors Association (CIDA)
- Chartered Institute of Securities & Investment (CISI)
- INSOL, International
- Recovery and Insolvency Specialists Association
- 100 Women in Finance
- Bachelor of Science degree, W.P. Carey School of Business – Arizona State University
- Master of Arts degree, School of Behavioral Sciences – Liberty University
- Member of the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (MCSI)
- Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA)
- Accredited Director, Chartered Secretaries of Canada (Acc. Dir.)
- Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS)
- “Investor Services” presentation, Fund Administration Course by Cayman Islands Fund Administrators Association (CIFAA), 2010.
- “Regulation and CIMA” presentation, Fund Administration Course by CIFAA, 2010 and 2009.
- Selected for CAIA Standard Setting panel, 2022.
- Received gold medallion for high distinction in Master of Arts program (Liberty University, 2018).
- Featured in CAIA Member Spotlight, 2018.
- Served as Member of the Mental Health Commission (Cayman Islands Government, 2015-2016).
- Graded qualifying Level II examination essays (CAIAA Grading Jamboree, 2010 and 2008).
- Featured in the Journal of Alternative Investments, Winter 2009.
- Represented CIMA at the Securities Exchange Commission’s International Institute for Securities Market Development in Washington, DC, 2009.
- Bestowed with the highest academic award, the Moeur Award (Arizona State University, 2001).
- Conferred the Professional Advisory Board Scholar Award for outstanding accountancy work (Arizona State University, 2001).
- Granted the first four-year academic scholarship (Goldman Sachs, 1997).
