The principal legislation pertaining to funds in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) is the Securities and Investment Business Act (SIBA).
Key Features
As per the Investment Business (Approved Managers) Regulations, an Approved Manager may act as the investment manager or investment advisor to any number of private or professional funds recognised under SIBA (including funds domiciled outside of the BVI), as well as any number of closed ended funds domiciled in the BVI which have the key characteristics of a private or professional fund.
An Approved Manager can also act for non‐BVI feeder funds into BVI master funds. The key restriction is that aggregate assets under management of all of the open ended funds cannot exceed USD400 million and that the capital commitments of all of the closed ended funds cannot exceed USD1 billion. The higher threshold for closed ended funds is reflective of the risk based approach taken by the Commission in the development of the regime; closed ended funds are widely considered to expose interested parties to a lower level of regulatory risk.
While an Approved Manager will not be restricted to any material extent on the way it carries on business, it is important to note that the regime is a “licensing regime” rather than an entirely exempted activity. The Commission will continue have regulatory powers at its disposal to take enforcement action against an Approved Manager should it determine it to be necessary to do so.
Legal Requirements
|
Requirements |
Description |
|
General |
|
|
Company or Limited Partnership |
|
USD 1,000 |
|
USD 1,500 |
|
No |
|
Share capital or equivalent |
|
|
· Minimum paid up capital |
None |
|
Directors |
|
|
2 |
|
Yes |
|
No (but one local representative) |
|
Shareholders |
|
|
2 |
|
Yes |
|
No |
|
Service Providers Required |
|
|
No |
Tax Treatment
Investment businesses are tax exempt
Duration to Set Up
About 3 months
Distinctive Benefits of Licence
- Tax exemption of investment businesses;
- A recognized and respected legal system supported by English common law, modern local legislation and a well-developed court system, including a dedicated commercial division; and
- No regulatory restrictions on investment policies or strategies or on performance and other fee arrangements.
The Valsen Advantage
- End to end comprehensive service
- Speedy and efficient service
- Expert advice on structuring options
- Dedicated ongoing compliance support
- Extensive network pool of service providers