GC US Industry Person of the Year Shortlist Announced

Peter Hughes, founder and CEO, Apex Fund Services

Over a period of 13 years, Peter Hughes has taken his independent fund administrator from the beaches of Bermuda to one of the top global players in the space.

Hughes, CEO and founder of Apex Fund Services, has consistently eyed breaking into the top ten rankings for administrators at a time where industry consolidation has taken over.

Under his leadership, he has grown the company across 26 jurisdictions globally and employs 1000 staff.

For Hughes and Apex, 2017 has turned out to be an incredibly busy year. In May it gained the backing of private equity firm Genstar Capital, while simultaneously acquiring Equinoxe Alternative Investment Services.

Following the announcement of the private equity backing, Hughes told Global Custodian: “We’ll be looking to add meaningfully-sized acquisitions – through transformational acquisitions – over the next three years.”

Then five months later, Hughes made his boldest move yet, with the acquisition of Deutsche Bank’s Alternative Fund Services business, essentially doubling its assets under administration.

The acquisition of Deutsche Bank’s Alternative Fund Services includes its administration services to hedge funds, private equity and real estate funds, along with depositary and fund of funds custody.

Hughes described the deal as “another significant step in the evolution of the Apex Group”.

Outside of its M&A activity, Hughes has made a number of developments in emerging markets such as Brazil and Saudi Arabia, and became one of the first administrators to receive approval to carry out services in Abu Dhabi.