The Liverpool City Region Freeport

Liverpool City Region (LCR) Freeport is one of only eight freeports in England. After working in partnership with ports, businesses, local authorities, trade unions and wider stakeholders, its Full Business Case (FBC) was approved by the UK Government in December 2022.

Designated areas within the freeport zone will benefit from incentives to encourage economic activity. Freeports operate with both ‘tax’ and ‘customs’ sites. Tax sites offer occupiers business rates relief and other incentives to support capital investment, skills and employment. Business rates generated at the tax sites will be retained locally for 25 years and reinvested in the area. Customs sites help enable the tariff-free movement of goods for both export and import through simplified customs procedures.

The Liverpool City Region, home to the country’s leading transatlantic port, is a natural freeport location. With the UK’s biggest western facing port, handling 45% of the UK’s trade from the United States, the Freeport area takes in a 45km diameter from the western point of Wirral Waters to the eastern point of Port Salford and includes all six of the city region’s local authorities.

The LCR Freeport is a multi-gateway, multi-modal zone covering 300 hectares of land and the freeport sites, which include several existing rail terminals and water-accessible locations, are located within areas of logistics and manufacturing capability.

The freeport has been shaped to support the delivery of the Liverpool City Region’s vision outlined in its Plan for Prosperity and Economic Recovery Plan.

Its overarching aim will be to ensure that the freeport contributes to the city region’s ambitions to create a fairer, stronger, cleaner city region, where noone is left behind.

Tax sites

Tax sites provide a range of benefits and are designed to attract new business operations and generate additional, added value investment. LCR Freeport’s designated tax sites are:

Parkside, St Helens: the largest strategic employment site in the City Region, it is located in St Helens close to the M6 and M62. The site includes the former Parkside Colliery and hopes to attract advanced manufacturing and logistics businesses.

3MG, Widnes: offers direct connections to the UK motorway network and rail access from the West Coast Main Line. 3MG is already involved in the hydrogen economy supporting capital investment in low carbon fuels and infrastructure.

Wirral Waters: located around the Birkenhead Docks, it has port connectivity, direct access to the M53 motorway and is located within the Mersey Waters Enterprise Zone. It comprises significant areas of dockside land capable of attracting a range of port-centric businesses, advanced manufacturing, innovation and research and development activities.

Eligible businesses in freeport tax sites will enjoy a range of tax incentives:

• Stamp Duty Land Tax relief

• Enhanced capital allowances for investment in plant and machinery and structures and buildings

• Business rates relief

• Employer National Insurance contributions relief

Customs Site Operators

There are a range of proposed customs zones to be located within the LCR Freeport, across a number of industries that may benefit, from advanced and biomanufacturing, to logistics and ports. These sites will undergo an approval process with Government/HMRC as part of the development of the outline business case.

Access to duty suspension, duty exemption on re-exports and flexibility on how duty is calculated through duty inversion.

Allows storage and processing activities in a freeport customs site under one combined Freeport customs special procedure, instead of multiple authorisations.

Streamlining the processes for bringing goods into freeport customs sites, as well as between customs sites, and reexport.

Allowing the movement of goods by conduct between other UK customs sites and into other special procedures to fit the needs of business.

In December 2022, HMRC approved SSO International Freight Forwarding as the freeport’s first Customs Site Operator meaning the LCR Freeport was officially operational.

https://www.liverpoolcityregionca.gov.uk/growing-our-economy/ liverpool-city-region-freeport/

MadfooatCom is an acclaimed leader in financial services technology based in Amman, Jordan. Established in 2011, our solutions make it possible for people in the MENA region and beyond to view and pay their bills with the greatest ease, comfort, and speed.

Our team of financial technology specialists is committed to continuous quality and innovation in electronic bill presentment and payment (EBPP).

Our mission is to deliver world-class payment and support services for our clients and their customers.

Our main platform, eFAWATEERcom, established in partnership with the Central Bank of Jordan, has processed over 84 million invoices valued at 30 billion JOD (as of November 2021) and growing rapidly.

At MadfooatCom, our Goal is clear: to build and support solutions with purpose and excellence, always earning the trust of our clients and their customers.

At MadfooatCom, we created a next generation, real-time electronic bill presentment and payment (EBPP) solution that enables customers to make payments seamlessly and securely, online and via mobile.

We partner with most banks and billers in Jordan to provide friction-free customer experiences, shortened collection cycles and the industry’s highest level of control.

Our state-of-the-art platform, called eFAWATEERcom, established in partnership with the Central Bank of Jordan, has processed over 84 million invoices valued at more than 30 billion JOD (as of November 2021).

Financial institutions, utilities, telecoms, government agencies, non-profits and trade organizations all use our solution. We can accommodate any kind of billing transaction regardless of industry or market.

Find out how we’re unlocking opportunities in the new digital economy for consumers, billers, and financial institutions across the region.

We are a proven financial technology leader with best-in-class EBPP delivered by a team of highly dedicated payments professionals. We enable clients of all sizes and categories to replace paper statements and payments with seamless digital alternatives that customers demand.

More than a technology provider, we are a full-service business partner handling all aspects of electronic billing and payment. We’re committed to the continuous innovation and improvement of our products and services.

MadfooatCom is the MENA region’s most trusted name in electronic billing and payments.

Wherever your business is based, your customers want to make payments in the most convenient way. Through our innovative solutions and expertise, we’re driving the adoption of seamless digital billing and payment to meet evolving needs and expectations in new markets. Now, you can partner with one of the most accomplished financial technology services team.

What Clients Gain

Convenience – Enabling customers to view and pay bills seamlessly, safely and quickly when and how they choose to.

Cost savings – Cut out billing costs of the printing, collating, and mailing process while reducing payment cycles and improving cash flow.

Unmatched service – Our dedicated team helps organizations harness the power of EBPP to make their business more productive and profitable.

CEO & Founder

As CEO & Founder, Nasser Saleh brings over two decades of top-tier entrepreneurial experience in the banking and IT sectors in the MENA. Before launching MadfooatCom, he was CIO of Jordan’s second fiscal reform program. Previously, he worked at the Al Rajhi, one of Saudi Arabia’s largest banks, where he managed programmes for retail, commercial and corporate banking divisions, as well as e-trading and payments programmes.

Previously, he worked as senior advisor at Accenture in Saudi Arabia and was a senior engineer at Microsoft in the USA. He’s led numerous strategic initiatives to develop and modernize electronic payment processes that promote safe, reliable and efficient e-commerce in the region.

In 2017, Jordan’s King Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein awarded Nasser with the distinguished Medal of Excellence for establishing the country’s acclaimed electronic billing and payment gateway with the support of the Central Bank of Jordan. He holds a B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Jordan.

https://madfooat.com/team/

By paying our local drivers and fleets fairly and providing them with training, we ensure that our drivers are treated with the respect they deserve. So when you need a local ride-hailing service, simply open the UVA app and book a minicab in a flash, knowing that you are helping the local community. From Land’s End to John O’ Groats, we are here to help.

Life moves fast in the business world, and you don’t want to have to slow down. That’s where we come in. UVA is the new way to book a ride on the fly and for when you and your team really need them. Through our intelligent systems, we tap into fleets across the UK in order to provide you with a ride when you need it.

With UVA we can save you precious time. Instead of having to wait for a ride to come and pick up your team from the office to get to that expo, we can do it in a few simple taps. What’s even better, is when you open a business account you can see all your bookings and payments in one place! One less thing for the finance team to hassle you for!

We are founded on the guiding principle of customer and community focus, with this in mind UVA rapport partners with businesses to build long-term mutually beneficial relationships.

At UVA we value our partnerships with organisations who have big teams whether that be customers, clients, members, employees, associates, tenants, suppliers or contractors. So that is why we are offering 5% off UVA rides for employees and customers of the UVA Business Scheme.

UVA Business offers first class, customer centric service to our commercial clients. Working directly and through our network we are synonymous with quality, reliability and value for money. https://www.uva.uk

It’s no longer enough to be a fantastic UK-wide ride-hailing service, we need to do more. Here at UVA, we want to help support everyone. From working with local communities to ensuring that we fully support all of our drivers across the country, our mission is to serve you.

We aim to go above and beyond when supporting local communities. From book donations all the way to praising local heroes. We are always looking to do more, as we believe companies should look to better communities, not just take!

Booking a UVA local driver is easy. Firstly, you will need to download our app, and fill in a few details. Once done, all you need to do is ping where you want to go, and the closest driver will arrive at your door in no time.

It’s that simple, and once you have the UVA app downloaded, you can book a ride with ease. What’s even better is that you will be supporting a local driver and their family!

WHY JOIN THE ABCC?

The ABCC is dedicated to serving businesses whether they are located in the UK or operating from any Arab country. With decades of experience, the chamber offers expert advice on how to do business in the Arab markets.

Joining the ABCC is a strategic decision which helps corporate entities gain solid foothold in the Arab region and United Kingdom with minimum time and effort.

The Chamber is very widely recognised at the highest levels in government and business for its work and achievements. In the delivery of its professional services, it cooperates closely on a daily basis with official organisations, the Arab Embassies in London and with key government institutions in Britain such as the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and official trade bodies such as The Department for International Trade (DIT).

As they increasingly come to realise the value of what the Chamber can do for them, new companies are joining our membership and making use of our set of bespoke benefits and valuable services, such as:

• Discounted rates on document services

• Free access to our updated insights and publications

• Venue hire at preferential rates

• Visa, translation services and research at preferential rates

• Business networking opportunities

• Discounted fees for ABCC’s events