British Virgin Islands Approved Manager

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
Corporate  vehicle permitted	Company or Limited Partnership
Application fee	USD 1,000
Annual license fee	USD 1,500
Local physical office required	No
Share capital or equivalent
Minimum paid up capital	None
Directors
Minimum number	2
Corporate directorship allowed	Yes
Local director required	No (but one local representative)
Shareholders
Minimum number	2
Corporate shareholder allowed	Yes
Local shareholder required	No
Service Providers Required
Company Secretary	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