The initial offering period began on Wednesday with nearly 500 people obtaining prospectuses. And many had been calling the bank before Wednesday, asking if they could be put on a mailing list for the document.

Butterfield Asset Management Ltd. director, Mr. Preston Hutchings, said: "We have had a lot of telephone calls.'' The prospectus says that unlike Bermuda's only other local mutual fund, Buttress Bermuda will charge no performance fee, scaling the cost to the consumer back by more than fifty percent.

The just-released prospectus indicates that preliminary expenses of the fund are estimated to be $30,000, including the cost of preparing and printing the prospectus. Those costs will be paid by the fund, amortised on a straightline basis over five years.

The management and administrative costs will be taken out of the income or capital of the fund. Initially, the monthly management fee will be calculated at the rate of 0.75 percent per annum of the average of the valuations of the net asset value of the entire fund in each month.

The shares are of $1 par value each at an initial subscription price of $10 each.

Shareholders should be paid quarterly dividends out of net income or net realised investment gains, and can have that money automatically transferred and reinvested in shares.

The present authorised share capital is $25,012,000 divided into the same number of shares, of which 12,000 shares have been designated as organisational shares alloted for cash to the fund manager, Butterfield Management Company Ltd.

The manager is entitled to a commission of up to 5 percent on the issue or redemption of shares, but does not intend to charge such a commission at this time.

The policies and investment objectives are to provide long-term capital growth and current income by investing in a diversified portfolio of Bermmuda assets, including equity securities of locally incorporated companies, or those having a substantial presence here, their debt securities and those of the Government, bank deposits, mortgages and other financial assets.

The fund will primarily invest in publicly-owned companies on the Bermuda Stock Exchange, and will get involved in a wide range of other possible investments. The current market capitalisation of all of the companies listed on the Exchange is in excess of $900 million.

But with the changing investment climate, the fund will eventually be able to look at possibly acquiring shares of international companies that are incorporated here, but are not listed on the local stock market.

The fund will have an adviser, Butterfield Asset Management Ltd., incorporated just last May, but already with assets under management of $900 million, as a result of building up an international clientele, consisting of trust accounts, individual and corporate agency accounts, pension funds and mutual funds. BAM Ltd. is adviser to at least eight other "Buttress'' mutual investment entities.

The prospectus states that the initial minimum subscription is BD$500, and additional subscriptions may be made in any amounts of not less than $500. But the bank has already indicated that investors with smaller deposits will be accepted.

The fund will limit the percentage of shares held by non-residents for exchange control purposes to 40 percent, and limit the non-Bermudian ownership to 20 percent.