The Legal 500

Different style - Vanessa King looks at VISTA trusts eight years on

It was the start of a new era for the British Virgin Islands (BVI) when the Virgin Islands Special Trust Act 2003 (VISTA) was enforced on 1 March 2004. The vision for VISTA came from the BVI trust industry and the need for BVI trust practitioners to meet the changing needs of their clients.

So far as tourism is concerned, the British Virgin Islands (the BVI) is described as "Nature's Little Secrets"; in the financial services industry this could not be further from the truth.

International law firm Harneys has once again earned stellar recognition from Chambers and Partners as one of the leading firms in the British Virgin Islands, with its practices in the Cayman Islands and Cyprus and recent expansion into Latin America also receiving positive reviews.

Over 800,000 companies have been incorporated in the British Virgin Islands (“BVI”) since 1984, and whilst many of those companies are purely used as holding vehicles for assets, increasing cross border investments has played a significant role in the increased use of BVI companies globally. Some of the key advantages of BVI companies include:

With the increasing popularity of British Virgin Islands (“BVI”) companies as a business entity worldwide, it is inevitable that these companies will become the subject matter of substantial sales and acquisitions. The briefing seeks to identify some of the structuring options for such a transaction, and the preparatory steps and other issues that may be of relevance.

British Virgin Island (“BVI”) companies are owned by their shareholders. The directors act as the shareholders’ agents in being responsible for the day to day running of the company and and having the powers necessary to undertake this role.

The BVI Business Companies Act 2004 (the “BCA”) contains a specific section on directors’ duties that essentially codifies the common law. Directors, shareholders and third parties dealing with companies should be aware of these duties.

Companies are incorporated in the British Virgin Islands (“BVI”) under the BVI Business Companies Act, 2004 (the “Act”) by the filing of Memorandum and Articles of Association with the Registrar of Corporate Affairs. This filing is made by the first registered agent of the Company (the “Registered Agent”) which each BVI company must have and must be located in the BVI.

The FSC releases the Public Funds Code to supplement SIBA and the Mutual Funds Regulations.

Directors of British Virgin Islands (“BVI”) companies have certain fiduciary duties which arise both at common law and under statute. These fiduciary duties ultimately seek to protect companies and their shareholders whose destiny lie primarily in the hands of the directors in charge.