Overview
The BVI has a VASP regime administered by its Financial Services Commission, sitting on top of a company law that international counsel have used for decades and that courts elsewhere understand.
What it is good for
Token issuance vehicles, holding companies above an operating entity, and structures where investors expect a familiar offshore company law.
What it is not good for
Banking. A BVI entity on its own is difficult to bank, and the difficulty has increased rather than decreased. Structures that assume a BVI company will hold operating accounts usually need rebuilding.
How it fits with the UAE
As a layer, not a substitute. A BVI company can sit above a UAE-licensed operating entity or hold a token project's intellectual property. It cannot carry on regulated activity in the UAE.
How we help
We advise on market access before a sales team is pointed at a country, document the basis on which clients in each market are accepted or refused, and build the controls that make that basis hold. Where a second licence is genuinely needed, we run it.
Questions fréquentes
Can we issue a token from a BVI company and serve UAE users?
Issuing from the BVI does not remove the UAE analysis. If the offering reaches UAE users, the UAE rules on virtual-asset issuance and possibly on securities engage regardless of where the issuer sits.
Sources
- BVI Financial Services Commission — current framework and guidance — Position to be confirmed against the regulator's own publications before reliance