BVI Finance This Week 30/04/21

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02May

BVI Finance This Week 30/04/21

02 May, 2021 | View Counts (905) |Return|

FRIDAY 30 APRIL 2021

BANK OF ASIA GETS THE FIRST SANDBOX PROJECT IN THE BVI

The first participant in the Regulatory Sandbox was approved by Financial Services Commission of the British Virgin Islands (BVI FSC) on 16 April 2021. Bank of Asia, a BVI-headquartered, fully digitalised global bank, has played a pivotal role in introducing, leading, and delivering this Sandbox project which is affiliated with one of the three most prominent Crypto Exchanges in the world.

The BVI’s Financial Services Regulatory Sandbox Regulation came into force in August 2020. It was designed to facilitate the innovation in the Financial Technology (FinTech) sector, allowing innovative financial solutions being tested in a defined and controlled environment. The approved participants will have 18 months (with a possibility of up to 6 months’ extension) to conduct financial services business in the BVI, without the need to apply for a license. This regime creates a more efficient, pro-commerce yet regulated business environment, demonstrating the jurisdiction’s commitment to its mission of building the leading digital International Financial Centre.

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BVI FINTECH TRAINING OPPORTUNITY NOW AVAILABLE THROUGH FINANCIAL SERVICES INSITIUTE

Professor Keith Carter

Dr. Derry Hodge

The BVI will soon launch a customised FinTech course, through the collaboration between the Financial Services Institute (FSI) at HLSCC, BVI Finance, and the National University of Singapore (NUS), Department of Computer Studies.

The online programme that is proposed to launch in August is designed to support the development of FinTech professionals in the BVI. Participants will receive professional certifications from NUS School of Computing.

The upcoming FinTech course was introduced to the BVI public via a virtual information session on April 28 and facilitated by BVI Finance CEO Elise Donovan, FSI Director Dr. Derry Hodge, and NUS Professor Keith Carter.

The three-tiered course begins with a two-week introduction that addresses the importance of FinTech and an overview of the sector. The course then explores programming and development for six weeks. The final tier involves traineeship where the BVI companies are partnering with the programme to provide students hands-on practice for one to four months. In this phase, participants may explore various projects including digital payments, Robo-Fund advisory, Blockchain Real Estate, Crypto Exchange, process automation, blockchain insurance, digital exchanges infrastructure, and consumer behavior analytics.

Course instruction will be done via Zoom and class dates and times will soon been finalised.

In introducing Wednesday’s presentation, CEO Donovan said that the BVI’s cryptocurrency market is among the largest in the world, adding that leading FinTech companies have chosen to incorporate in the BVI.

The CEO noted that while FinTech and other digital services have been growing exponentially, there is a gap between what the industry needs in terms of talent or human capital, and what talent can be sourced in the BVI.

Ms. Donovan then explained that the FinTech course is one of the first steps in bridging the gap which will allow the BVI to further grow the sector and become more tech savvy and on par with countries like Singapore.

The FinTech programme targets new graduates and mid-career professionals who are looking to upskill. The overall objective of the course is to develop the BVI FinTech ecosystem and enable local talent to compete globally.

To that end, Dr. Hodge said the course is, “absolutely designed to prepare persons for careers in Fintech or to diversify their portfolio”.

Professor Carter said that the course reflects the developments of the future. He said, “This is now acutely known as digital transformation...it’s about going into the future, creating more jobs than ever before, and having really exciting inflections in history; not that we have seen since the 1920’s and 1930’s with the introduction of electricity, telephone and cars.”

For more information, contact the Financial Services Institute via telephone 284-340-6310 and 284-340-6322 or via email on derhodge@hlscc.edu.vg, Derry.Hodge@fsibvi.com.

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ART OF EVASION

Hazel-Ann Hannaway

Richard Parchment

An inherent risk of litigation is that defendants may dishonestly seek to hinder the enforcement of adverse judgments by rendering their assets judgment-proof. Defendants often use mechanisms like the dissipation or moving of assets abroad, using the legal structure of trusts and registered companies to shield, or put their assets beyond the reach of a judgment creditor.

In addition to these steps, when defendants possess the necessary resources, they could deploy a plethora of tactical legal challenges to make it exceedingly difficult, if not costly, for a judgment creditor to reach their assets. The English Court of Appeal was confronted with one such scenario in the recent case of JSC VTB Bank v Skurikhin and others [2020] EWCA Civ 1337.

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THE BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS MODERNISES ITS TRUSTEE ACT AND WELCOMES CHANGES TO ITS PROBATE LEGISLATION

THE TRUSTEE (AMENDMENT) ACT, 2021

The Trustee (Amendment) Act, 2021 (the Bill), recently gazetted and expected to be enacted in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) shortly, seeks to implement a number of important, cutting-edge changes to the Trustee Act (the Act) that will further enhance the BVI’s reputation as a leading trusts jurisdiction.

We expect the proposed amendments, which follow the recommendations of the BVI Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners and mirror similar developments in other leading trusts jurisdictions, will be well received by industry. They represent the most significant development in BVI trust legislation since the introduction of the VISTA regime in 2003

THE PROBATE (RESEALING) ACT 2021

Presently, it is only possible to reseal foreign grants of probate and letters of administration from a limited number of jurisdictions, including the United Kingdom and certain Overseas British territories. The Probate (Resealing) Act 2021 will expand the simplified procedure of resealing foreign grants of probate and letters of administration in the BVI to sixty-seven jurisdictions, including Hong Kong and the United States of America.

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ESTABLISHED TOOLS FOR NEW ASSETS: DECRYPTING THE PROBLEM OF ASSET TRACING IN CRYPTOCURRENCIES

While the pandemic has wreaked havoc on healthcare systems, employment rates and economies across the world, investment asset classes from equity to real estate has seen phenomenal growth fuelled undoubtedly in part by unprecedented relief measures introduced by governments worldwide. However, one asset class in particular has seen meteoric growth and significant investment interest from organisations that only a few years ago dismissed it as too volatile or even a scam.

The current market capitalisation of cryptocurrencies is approximately US$2 trillion (up from approximately US$180 billion in April 2020), approximately half of which is attributable to the now ubiquitous Bitcoin.

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RECOGNITION OF A FOREIGN OFFICIAL IN BVI CASE LAW

Tameka Davis

Allana-J Joseph

Partner Tameka Davis and Associate Allana-J Joseph shared their insights with the readers of CDR Magazine on an important decision of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, Court of Appeal (sitting in the Territory of the Virgin Islands).

According to the authors: “The case, Net International Property Limited v. Adv Eitan Erez, is a pivotal decision because it is the first and only decision by the appellant court which comprehensively examines the distinction between the common law power of both recognition and assistance, and the extent to which the British Virgin Islands (BVI) Insolvency Act has, or crucially has not, eroded either power.”

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