ICIJ article brands VI as 'forbidden city'
The article was headlined ‘The British Virgin Islands: A Forbidden City’ and re-published on the ICIJ’s website on January 24, 2014.
The article, written by Anne Michel for Le Monde, noted that the Territory recently failed the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) test for assessing a country’s international cooperation in the tax fraud and tax evasion fight.
“For some time now, the [Territory’s] business and political stalwarts have seen themselves under siege from the OECD, ICIJ and other outsiders who, these leaders believe, have unfairly shamed the islands as a sanctuary for covert money,” the ICIJ article stated.
However, the article quotes the Territory’s Financial Secretary, Neil M. Smith as saying, "The money is not here!" “We incorporate companies here for investors whose identity we protect. We don’t open bank accounts. These companies’ money is in Panama, Liechtenstein or Switzerland. Even in New York and Paris…”
According to the report, Smith explained to the journalist that Tortola benefited from the fall of Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega in 1989. The article notes that prior to this, Panama was regarded as the leader in the highly competitive market for registering offshore companies. Smith explained that BVI had several advantages making it attractive for offshore banking, among these were simple company law, zero tax and anti-money-laundering legislation.
“The BVI has [harboured] perhaps 850,000 offshore companies (as much as 40 percent of the world total), with 450,000 of them still active,” the ICIJ article said.
The article pointed out that the laws here are so accommodating and secrets so closely guarded that it’s easy to set up a phony company. It said that for even companies that are not shell companies, the lack of transparency can hide illicit financial flows.
The ICIJ piece said that despite various agreements Tortola has signed for the exchange of information, “few foreign requests actually lead to the real beneficiaries being identified.” It said that 59 French requests have gone unheeded, with either the information deemed unavailable or the regulator having no access to it.
The article pointed out that in 2012 the House of Assembly passed a Bill making it mandatory for offshore services firms to keep a register of shareholders but it is proving hard to implement.
Lorna Smith and VI destiny
The article continued by stating, although she holds no official post, Mrs. Lorna Smith, who is also the wife of Premier Dr The Hon. D. Orlando Smith, appears to be in control of the Territory’s destiny, even travelling to Hong Kong in 2013 to inaugurate the Virgin Islands’ new office there.
"She doesn’t miss a single round of diplomatic negotiations on the future of the BVI either," the article added.
According to the article, her cause is the defense of small tax havens that have come under attack from the G20 club of rich nations – and she’s passionate about this subject.
“The ICIJ has done us a lot of damage. Why isn’t anyone saying anything about the Americans?” Mrs. Smith reportedly cries while wearing a figure-hugging black dress and pearl necklace. “It’s harder to set up a company here than in Delaware!”
The full article can be viewed at the link below:
http://www.icij.org/offshore/british-virgin-islands-forbidden-city#main-content
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38 Responses to “ICIJ article brands VI as 'forbidden city'”
I don't even know why VINO even giving these ##$% more limelight. The article reads as if it was written by a drunk and high 16yr old. It's raft with lies and bs and should be left to die a natural death. These people have no shame whatsoever and obviously have no clue how financial services work. If BVI was so bad then why are the client accounts being opened up in UK, USA, Switzerland, Asia etc. as opposed to BVI? LOL! We get the company registration and post-incorp business, that's it. BVI does not have the money and they know this.
The real troubling part of this is not the bs that the man wrote. But how the hell can an unknown, unvetted person end up in our PREMIER'S HOUSE sitting and chatting with the FIRST LADY? Are we stupid or something???
Many, many, many, many are being deceived every day by the Devil who transforms himself into an angel of light...2 Corinthians 11: 14.