“We want to revise the beneficial ownership database, and we are being assisted by the U.K. to implement a new framework,” said Secretary of State Patrick Payet, according to the government-funded Seychelles News Agency.
The archipelago, comprising 115 islands in the Indian Ocean off East Africa, has long been an attractive tax haven for international business. Companies operating there are exempt from taxation on income generated outside the country, and the country’s confidentiality laws protect the privacy of business owners and their financial dealings.
This made Seychelles a magnet for wealthy individuals and corporations seeking to exploit its corporate secrecy and tax advantages.
In 2023, the country was placed on the EU’s blacklist of uncooperative tax havens but was moved to the gray list in February this year after it began cooperating.
Under Tuesday’s agreement, Seychellois financial institutions, including the Financial Investigations Unit, will collaborate with their British counterparts to strengthen their ability to analyze beneficial ownership information and counter illicit financial activities.
The U.K. will also support the Anti-Corruption Commission Seychelles and the national police in investigating corruption cases.
Crypto giant Binance has processed Iranian transactions with a value of $8 billion since 2018 despite U.S. sanctions intended to cut Iran off from the global financial system, blockchain data show.
More than half of wealth advisers in the United States surveyed by Bitwise say they’re more open to investing in cryptocurrency after Trump won the US election in November. Bitwise’s latest survey
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) is preparing a transition finance framework to classify whether activities can help carbon-intensive firms reach net-zero emissions, to support the development
Quick summary:• The combined wealth of the 500 richest individuals worldwide reached $10 trillion in 2024, a record high driven largely by tech stock gains and other economic factors. • Eight tech