GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands, June 27, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --The world's leading institutional investors, CEOs, economists and academics will gather at the world-renowned Ritz-Carlton in Grand Cayman, November 1-2, 2012 to discuss and debate the crucial ingredients for sustaining a vibrant global alternative investment industry. The key theme of the Summit is 'Innovation in Alternative Investments: Seeing What's Next'. One of the keynote speakers is Sir Richard Branson, the founder of Virgin Group. Industry speakers at the event will include; Peter Clarke, CEO, MAN GROUP; Matt Botein, Global Head of Alternative Investments, Blackrock; Mel Lagomasino, CEO, Genspring Family Offices; Anne Richards, CIO, Aberdeen Asset Management; Mark Yusko, CEO, Morgan Creek; Steve Shenfeld, President, Midocean Credit Partners; Jane Buchan, CEO/MD, PAAMCO and Mark Okada, Co-Founder and CIO of Highland Capital Management.

This exclusive, global thought leadership event will bring together best-in-class industry professionals, and will feature a panel of esteemed and innovative speakers who will address the economic challenges that affect the alternative investment industry. Organised by Alternative Investment Research Ltd., the Cayman Alternative Investment Summit (Cayman A.I. Summit) will unite some of the greatest minds in the alternative investment industry.

With over 9,000 open-ended investment funds registered in the Cayman Islands, the Cayman A.I. Summit will connect the leading domicile of choice for offshore investment funds with the alternative investment industry's most influential leaders and will lead the development of a new narrative for the industry; on what it stands for and what it can deliver in the post-crisis world.

"I am excited to be in the Cayman Islands for the Cayman Alternative Investment Summit," said Sir Richard Branson, one of the keynote speakers for the Summit. "The event has a very impressive range of speakers from the alternative investment industry that will make for some very interesting discussions on the future of the industry."

The Cayman A.I. Summit has the support of some of the largest companies in the world and the Cayman Islands including; KPMG, Deutsche Bank, Mourant Ozannes, Paladyne, and Virgin Unite.

"The Cayman Alternative Investment Summit is an opportunity for the industry's elite to take an introspective look at itself, seeing where the industry has been and predicting where it will go in the future," said Anthony Cowell, Partner in Alternative Investments at KPMG in the Cayman Islands and Editorial Chair. "KPMG is proud to be at the centre of the event and looks forward to the stimulating and thought provoking debate, set against the backdrop of the domicile of choice for alternative investments."

Cayman Managing Partner for Mourant Ozannes, Neal Lomax said, "The launch of the Cayman Alternative Investment Summit is a significant milestone for the Cayman Islands. We are delighted to be a major sponsor of the Summit in its inaugural year and we are confident it will prove to be unparalleled in terms of the quality of its participants, content and organisation. Our commitment to the Summit is reflective of Mourant Ozannes' continued confidence in the future of the Cayman Islands as one of the world's leading international financial centers."

Media and Association Partners for the Cayman A.I. Summit include: Absolute Return, Cayman Financial Review, AIMA, Investments & Pensions Europe (IPE), FinAlternatives, Hedge Fund Alert, HFM Week, Albourne Village, IFI Global, CAIA, HSP News, Hedge Funds Review and The Hedge Fund Journal.

Consistent with the commitment of the event's major sponsors to corporate citizenship and following Sir Richard Branson's philanthropic lead, the Cayman A.I. Summit charity is Virgin Unite the non-profit foundation of the Virgin Group. Virgin Unite's mission is to "connect people and entrepreneurial ideas to make change happen; to help revolutionize the way government, business and social sectors work together business as a force for good."

Working with Sir Richard Branson, it is expected that the Cayman A.I. Summit will contribute over US$150,000 to Virgin Unite.

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Sir Richard Branson keynote speaker at Cayman Alternative Investment Summit