The trust industry has proven to be resilient, robust and growing over the past four years from 2020 to 2023, according to the Cook Islands Financial Services Development Authority Report 2023-2024.

The report shows that during this period, it recorded a 43 per cent increase in gross revenues, an 18 per cent increase in registration and tax revenue to the Government, and an 80 per cent increase in wages paid, with a significant focus on value addition for clients.

The report to Parliament also showed that between the years July 2023 and June 2024, there was a significant increase in registrations and renewals with the highest recorded in January-March, 2024, of 957, indicating recovery and growth.

The Financial Services also reported that from July 2023 to June 2024, there were 3101 registered entities, representing an increase of 3.89 per cent from the 2985 registered in 2022/2023. The trend indicated a steady increase in registration and renewals particularly from October 2023.

The report further showed the challenges faced by the FSDA including maintaining a competitive edge globally such as competing with larger, more established international financial centres (IFCs).

They are also facing challenges due to the lack of diversification in markets and services and limited competition and market participants.

In mitigation, they will focus on marketing the jurisdiction’s niche strengths such as robust asset protection, innovative trust legislation and compliance with international standards.

For markets, FSDA looks to launch strategic marketing campaigns targeting new regions such as Asia, Europe and the Middle East. And they are also looking to support initiatives to attract international financial service providers to the Cook Islands.

In terms of contributing to Cook Islands GDP recovery, the report said: “While tourism is the largest sector in the Cook Islands, other important sectors include finance, agriculture, fishing and construction.”

The report said that the Cook Islands Statistics Office identifies the financial services industry as comprising the finance and insurance sectors.

In 2023, this sector contributed NZD 57.2 million to the country’s GDP, representing 9.6 per cent of the total GDP and the financial service had been acknowledged as the key driver of economic recovery during the 2023 period.