IFC World 2019

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BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS

THE BVI CONTINUES TO PUNCH ABOVE ITS WEIGHT In the words of John Donne, “No man is an island.” This phrase is as true today as it was when it was written hundreds of years ago. We live in a truly connected world whose economy is powered by cross border activity, whether that be travel or investment. With a long-standing reputation as a reliable and efficient offshore financial centre, the British Virgin Islands are at the epicentre of this intersection, having an economy dependent on both. Never complacent, the territory is always striving to evolve further as a global leader in the financial management sector, most recently with its incubator funds and also its FinTech initiative.

SIZE MATTERS! The British Virgin Islands’ financial sector powers more than US$1.5 trillion of investment around the world and supports 2.2 million jobs. [Source: Capital Economics report: “Creating Value – The BVI’s Global Contribution” – June 2017.] More than 400,000 BVI business companies, which enable the British Virgin Islands to be the seventh largest source of foreign direct investment, are currently active. The BVI is also home to parts of the group structures of more than 140 major businesses listed on the London, New York or Hong Kong main stock exchanges. In addition, major international development banks, including the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, use BVI Business Companies to help fund projects around the world.

A MODERN INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL CENTRE The BVI has a world-class brand and its business model is very attractive, with an established system of common law and US dollar-denominated currency. It performs its services in a secure, safe, well-regulated and business-friendly environment. It has a proven track record of excellence in its financial sector, exemplary regulatory standards, innovative legislation, state-of-the-art technology, and its firms and agencies are run and staffed by experienced and highly qualified professionals. Those are the reasons why top-tier firms are based in and do business from and through this jurisdiction.

The BVI’s advantages also include competitive and cost-efficient fees, highly efficient turnaround times, 24-hour services in some areas and the largest corporate registry of its kind in the world. The BVI’s corporate registry kept working in September 2017 when Hurricanes Irma and Maria tore through the islands.

A ROBUST REGULATOR The BVI recognises and accepts the importance of compliance with established international standards of regulation and supervision. It conforms to these standards through the efforts of its autonomous, all-in-one financial regulator, the Financial Services Commission (FSC), its financial training body, the Financial Services Institute, and its autonomous Financial Investigation Agency (FIA). The territory has a good track-record of international co-operation. It adheres to all international standards, combats money laundering and terrorist finance and remains keen to satisfy the standards of the International Monetary Fund.

TAX INFORMATION EXCHANGE AGREEMENTS (TIEAS) In 2002, the territory signed a formal commitment with the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to uphold its principles of tax transparency and exchange of information. Indeed, in 2015 the OECD’s Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes found the BVI to be “largely compliant” with standards of transparency and “fully compliant” in terms of exchange of information.

A REGIONAL COMMERCIAL COURT The presence of an internationally respected commercial court is a huge asset to the BVI. The court operates as part of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, so there is a final right of appeal to the Privy Council in London. This specialist court places the BVI far ahead of other jurisdictions in expediting the cases that come before it, and in the timely handing down of judgements.

BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS THE BVI CONTINUES TO PUNCH ABOVE ITS WEIGHT

THE INTERNATIONAL ARBITRATION CENTRE In 2014, the BVI International Arbitration Centre (BVI IAC), an independent not-for-profit institution, was established to meet the demands of the international business community for a neutral, impartial, efficient and reliable institution to resolve disputes in the Caribbean, Latin America and beyond. The BVI largely adopted the UNCITRAL (United Nations Commission on International Trade Law) Model Law by passing the Arbitration Act in 2013 and it signed the New York Convention (which requires courts of contracting states to give effect to private agreements to arbitrate and to enforce arbitration awards made in other contracting states) on 25 May 2014. These two crucial steps allowed it to establish its internationally respected arbitration centre.

IDENTIFYING THE ULTIMATE BENEFICIAL OWNER Another pioneering innovation has been the BVI’s formidable Beneficial Ownership Search System (BOSS) which the jurisdiction established in accordance with the ‘Exchange of Notes’ agreement that it signed with the UK in April 2016. This secure government search system satisfies global standards regarding beneficial ownership and balances the need for both disclosures of information about companies to the Government and appropriate levels of privacy, ensuring that companies share information rapidly and efficiently with law enforcement bodies.

GLOBAL MANDATE Already in possession of a sophisticated array of products and services used by a discerning, highnet-worth clientele, the BVI has been marketing itself worldwide in recent years. It has long been pursuing opportunities in South East Asia, lately often in accordance with China’s impressive Belt and Road initiative. The BVI is small territory on the map but it does not have an island mentality and is very much a place where large global enterprises gather. With its formidable track record, the BVI will continue to punch well above its weight.

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