Cook Islands Finance (the Financial Services Development Authority) will lead a jurisdictional presence at the STEP Orange County 2026 Institute in February of 2026.

The STEP Orange County Institute, to be held in Newport Beach, California, attracts a highly targeted audience of over 200 estate planning attorneys, accountants, financial advisers, and insurance professionals from across the United States.

Cook Islands Finance will sponsor and host an exhibition booth, providing a dedicated platform to engage directly with US advisers and promote the jurisdiction’s strengths in asset protection, trust innovation, and international structuring. They will also be joined by representatives from Cook Islands trust companies.

A key highlight of the programme will be a one-hour technical session delivered by Noovai Aspris, Legal Counsel at Trustees & Fiduciaries Cook Islands, that will focus on international trust planning, cross-border wealth structuring, and recent innovations in trust law. The session is expected to resonate strongly with practitioners advising on both asset protection trusts and relationship property planning.

Tony Fe’ao, CEO of Cook Islands Finance, said the STEP Orange County Institute aligns closely with the Authority’s strategic focus on deepening engagement in the US market.

“STEP Orange County provides direct access to high-quality advisers who influence structuring decisions for US clients. Many delegates will already be familiar with the Cook Islands, and being the only international offshore jurisdiction represented allows us to engage in focused, high-quality discussions about offshore planning and how it complements domestic trust solutions.”

“Offshore planning is sometimes viewed through misconceptions formed during earlier periods of regulatory development. STEP Orange County allows us to reset that narrative in-person with advisors by explaining how Cook Islands structures operate today – grounded in established case law, strong regulation, and clearly defined governance.”

Participation in STEP Orange County 2026 forms part of Cook Islands Finance’s broader strategy to reinforce the jurisdiction’s reputation as a trusted, compliant, and innovative international financial centre.

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