NEWS

Photo By: Isle of Man The Isle of Man, a self-governing dependent territory of the British Crown, is launching a promotional campaign in China to attract more Chinese investors for its economic expansion. "We hope to have more Chinese investors coming to the island to involve its economic development," said Steven Beevers, head of Special Projects under the Department of Economic Development of the Isle of Man Government. The government has sent a group to China recently to seek business opportunities in Beijing, Guangzhou in Guangdong province and Shanghai. Beevers said Britain has emerged as the most favorite European country...

NEWS 2020

Photo By: GettyImage New York, London, Hong Kong, and Singapore have again topped the latest biannual Global Financial Centers Index compiled by Z/Yen. The rankings of leading offshore centers, such as Jersey and Guernsey, improved significantly compared with the previous report from September 2014. The GFCI, which this time surveyed 3,527 persons, measures the competitiveness of financial centers based on the business and tax environment, human capital, infrastructure, reputation, and market access. In the latest ranking, New York retained its lead with a rating of 778 – one point ahead of London, which was dethroned by New York in March...

NEWS 2020

Photo By: XPhotos Cyprus has announced that it has now lifted capital controls introduced in 2013 to prevent bank depositors moving large sums of money out of the country. The capital controls were imposed in March 2013 to prevent a run on the banks. Subsequently, the Government temporarily proposed a one-off levy on bank depositors. The restrictions were eased in January and have now been fully removed. The measure involved a EUR20,000 (USD21,700) monthly limit on transfers from Cypriot accounts to foreign banks. According to a BBC report, Cyprus's President, Nicos Anastasiades, described the removal as "a vote of confidence...

NEWS 2020

Photo By: GettyImages China and Hong Kong have signed a fourth Protocol to their existing double taxation agreement (DTA), with amendments to support the administration of tax arrangements for cross-border equity investments and investment funds. The Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, K C Chan, who signed the fourth Protocol on behalf of Hong Kong, said the deal "clarifies the conditions under which an investment fund would be qualified for Hong Kong resident status, thus giving certainty to investment funds' application of their tax arrangements." He added that this "will be conducive to the actively promoted asset management businesses...

NEWS 2020

Photo By: CIRC The Isle of Man Insurance and Pensions Authority (IPA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC) to foster co-operation on insurance matters. Isle of Man Chief Minister Allan Bell, who is this week (April 21) heading an Isle of Man delegation to China, presented the signed document on behalf of the IPA to Chen Wen Hui in Beijing, who is the Vice Chairman of CIRC. The delegates said that the MoU is an explicit recognition of the intention of both organizations to provide mutual assistance and information to ensure coordinated...

NEWS 2020

Photo By: Caixin Recent months have seen a number of regulations by the Chinese government aimed to ease some of the restrictions that are part of China’s currency control system. The latest of these changes is the announcement by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) on March 30, 2015, stating that foreign-invested companies may now convert RMB to and from foreign currency in the capital account. The Chinese currency control system distinguishes between transactions under the current account and the capital account, and requires foreign investors to open separate bank accounts for both. Current account foreign currency transactions include...

NEWS 2020

Photo By: MegaCity Hong Kong Hong Kong is now facing the same ageing population crises as Mainland China. It is estimated that by 2040, about one in three Hong Kong residents will be over the age of 65. In order to help alleviate concerns about this, the Immigration Department has recently announced that a set of new enhanced measures to its immigration policy will be implemented by the second quarter of 2015. Essentially, these new measures are expected to build up “human capital” in Hong Kong by supporting the local workforce with foreign professionals and talents. The new measures include:...

NEWS 2020

Photo By: Boetie Conseil The British Virgin Islands (BVI) Government has told financial institutions that the deadline for registration under its newly launched Financial Account Reporting System (BVIFARS) to facilitate FATCA compliance is June 1, 2015. Financial institutions required to submit information to the Government under the US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) between the BVI and the US must register to use BVIFARS. The FATCA requires financial institutions outside the US to report information on financial accounts held by their US customers to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The reporting deadline for this information from...

NEWS 2020