Gov’t not fazed by drop in financial services

Amid new information that the territory’s financial services industry continues to be plagued by declines in company incorporation, Premier Dr D Orlando Smith has tried to allay fears, saying the ‘extremely attractive’ British Virgin Islands (BVI) has an ‘internationally respected’ legal framework.

He also declared that, despite the decline in company incorporation, the BVI remains one of the largest company incorporation jurisdictions.

“Despite facing a number of challenges over the last 12 months, it is clear that the BVI remains an extremely attractive place to do business. Whilst the number of new company incorporations has been impacted by factors such as bank de-risking, changes in global regulation, and unprecedented levels of scrutiny and attention, we still proudly hold the position as one of the largest company incorporation jurisdictions in the world,” said Premier Smith.

He continued: “The BVI continues to provide access to leading products and expertise, as well as a trusted and internationally respected legal framework and court system. This jurisdiction plays a critical role in the international finance machine that underpins global growth and international investment. However, we aim to build upon our success by remaining forward-looking and evolving our services and regulations to reflect the changing demands of global commerce.”

Premier Smith, who is also minister of finance went on state that the BVI is committed to maintaining what he described as a ‘world class destination’ for international finance and commerce.

He made the comments while responding to the BVI Financial Services Commission’s latest Statistical Bulletin, which showed that company incorporation dropped by 35 percent in the third quarter last year, compared to the corresponding quarter in the year 2015.

More bad news for financial services: 35% drop