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The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has the policy of reporting countries with insufficient AML / CFT regimes from 2000 and has proven to be successful over the years. Three times a year the FATF issues public documents that include jurisdictions whose measures against money laundering and terrorist financing are poor. In general, the FATF […]

All over the world many businesses and economies were negatively influenced by the global pandemic. The supply chains of all kinds were also damaged: the cases of non-compliance with contractual obligations grew in numbers immensely. This caused a high demand for more effective alternative dispute resolution (ADR) methods in many jurisdictions including Singapore. Filing a […]

In one of our previous posts, we have discussed the tendency of using the risk-based approach for effective AML compliance. But what is it exactly? Originally, it was introduced in 2000 by the Final Conduct Authority in the UK. The anti-money laundering industry adopted the principle and has been using it since. As to define […]

So, why does one obtain an Authorized Electronic Money Institution or Authorized Payment Institution license in Europe? Well, if someone is seeking to provide payment services, money transfer services, electronic wallets, prepaid cards, or merchant service, it is necessary for them to apply for a license. The application needs to be submitted to a relevant […]

What is an amalgamation? It is defined as a process when two or more companies become a new entity. It is however different from a merger: in this case none of those firms survive as a legal entity. Amalgamation implies that the assets and liabilities of combined firms now belong to a totally new entity. […]

During the last seven years, the People’s Republic of China has been working on the creation of a blockchain-backed digital currency project. Now it is completed; the currency received the name Digital Yuan. Defining Digital Yuan This currency is supported by the state and is designed for tracking all movements of the currency. The currency […]

The importance of Know Your Client is truly undeniable for the financial sector. The control mechanism called Know Your Client (KYC) enables financial institutions to identify their client, check their financial and residency information, and then perform customer due diligence searches. Only after undergoing these procedures, the client can open an account. The main goal […]

Not too long ago, in the end of 2020, a company OSL LTD has successfully received a license authorizing digital asset trade in Hong Kong. This is the first case ever a license of this kind was granted. The license gives the company the right to trade in virtual securities and also provide services that […]

In finance, risk management is an activity conducted to analyze, identify and afterward accept or mitigate the uncertainties that come inseparably with investments. The key task of risk management is to analyze the investment decision and attempt to quantify the potential losses. After that, the investor can take appropriate action or stay passive based on […]

Some merchants tend to be hesitant about accepting payment in digital currencies and they have their reasons. Mainly, the reason for this attitude is the fact that today many coins become popular in a short time but then disappear as quickly. Therefore, merchants do not have any guarantees that customers would be still using that […]

Accretion can be defined as a gradual growth of assets and earnings which can be given by several reasons: mergers or acquisitions, business expansion, company’s internal growth. From the financial point of view, accretion is the collection of the additional income that an investor is planning to receive after they have bought a bond at […]

Just as many other sectors, finance has been immensely impacted by the pandemic. In order to reduce the financial consequences of pandemic processes and working from home, banks took action which resulted in compliance teams caring even more responsibility than before. The financial pressure came over the compliance teams that were still stuck in the […]

When starting a business, opening a business bank account should be one of the first steps to take, because keeping separate records is just not enough. Business owners may choose then whether to keep their business and personal accounts in separate banks or to opt for one bank with competitive accounts for both areas of […]

All financial institutions in Singapore that provide financial services are obliged to have a license approved by the MAS. Today we will find out what licensing requirements they must face. It is necessary to obtain a license for every regulated activity in case a financial institution carries out several regulated activities. However, an institution can […]

According to the local legislation, entities that provide financial services and targeting of customers in Singapore must obtain a license from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). The type of the license further depends on the activity that is conducted by the financial institution. We will now explore the most popular kinds of financial services […]

The goal of financial technology is to facilitate and improve the way financial services are used. By putting to use algorithms and special software, FinTech offers the possibility of managing financial processes more efficiently to businesses and consumers. Thanks to these efforts, financial services have become more inclusive. The background Being a relatively young sphere, […]

So, what is due diligence? It is generally understood as a process of audition or investigating in order to confirm certain facts or information. For the financial sector, in particular, due diligence is defined as an examination of financial records after which an entity or an individual can enter into a transaction with someone else. […]

Especially from a long-term perspective, corporate mergers or acquisitions can have a huge influence on companies’ growth and overall outlook. Yet even though the transformation of the acquiring company can happen in a very short term, mergers and acquisitions are considered to have significant risks because, statistically, only 30% or less of them turn out […]

A joint venture, or a JV, is an agreement between several parties established to accomplish a specific task together by compounding their resources. It could be a new project or other activity that is a point of interest for all parties. In such an arrangement each participant is accountable for losses, costs, and profits coming […]

Thanks to the technology of payment gateways merchants are able to accept credit or debit cards when their customers need to pay for purchased goods or services. This term includes both card reading devices in regular stores and online shops as well. Physical stores use terminals to collect payments made by cards or phones. Online […]

The global pandemic is immensely supporting the trend of digitalizing the whole world. Parallelly, technological development is not ceasing either. In the modern age, financial institutions invest in technological infrastructures like blockchain: to digitalize their actions, increase their efficiency, and ensure security. Moreover, these infrastructure investments help fight money laundering as the transactions can be […]

For a long time now Hong Kong has been viewed as one of the biggest capital markets in the world. Also, it holds second place after mainland China in direct investments in Asia. We will now briefly discuss the regulation of PEFs in Hong Kong. FDI regulation Direct PEFs are regulated and controlled in order […]

Who does not talk about crypto assets these days? The most popular ones are of course Bitcoin, Ether, Litecoin, etc. Their main assignment is being a payment method. The key purpose of regulating them in the UK is the prevention of money laundering. Such activities as anti-money laundering regulations and counter-terrorism financing initiatives in the […]

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We can meet the term “drawdown” in both sectors: in banking and in trading. Nevertheless, the meaning is not the same. On the one hand, a drawdown means a reduction in equity when used in trading. On the other hand, the banking sector uses the term to explain a gradual accessing of credit funds. Drawdown […]

Purchasing shares of Argentinian companies belongs among the most popular types of FDI in Argentina. Other common forms are simultaneous or delayed signing and completion. Usually, the type mainly depends on the preliminary arrangements and terms negotiated by parties. Yet, their agreements are not everything: deals in regulated industries are required to be approved. In […]

The parallel between corruption, bribery, and money laundering cannot be denied. Overall, corruption crimes contribute to increasing the illegal money circulation as well as creates the perfect conditions for money laundering. The research conducted by IMF stated that countries with poor control over corruption are likely to how low Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing […]

Managerial accounting uses the term inherent risk to define the possibility of incorrect or misleading information in accounting statements caused by a different influence than the failure of controls. Most commonly, accounts with a larger amount of judgment and approximation or the ones involving complex financial instruments are a place where incidents of inherent risk […]

Almost a month ago Mastercard announced that in 2021 its network will be supporting some types of cryptos. Even though the company has not yet stated which cryptocurrency types will be included, it has already presented its requirements. This move is another demonstration of cryptocurrency legitimation. Reasons behind the initiative During a certain period of […]

Recently the world has been following the story of the Reddit rally where amateur traders propped the stocks of GameStop Corp. (GME), AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc. (AMC), and other companies. We all have been watching them taking on professional investors and enjoying the satisfying revenge. To describe the situation more accurately it would be correct […]

Treaty reinsurance is a type of contract that confirms an insurance purchase by an insurance company from another insurer. This contract type is one of three reinsurance contracts. Today we will discuss the definition and the advantages of treaty reinsurance. The core meaning The reinsurer company buys the insurance from the cedent, the issuing company, […]

Lately, mediation has been gaining popularity as a helpful alternative to litigation. It is considered to be fast and cost-effective, too. Nevertheless, mediation still cannot completely get rid of many speculations and misconceptions that surround it. Many people continue to take mediation as a preparatory stage before entering the court phase. Such stereotypes can needlessly […]

Despite being one of the largest worldwide investors and one of the most developed economies, Japan still attracts significant amounts of foreign investments. In Japan, equity investment including investing via direct investment funds is gaining higher importance in terms of industry restructuration. Both institutional and retail investors seek to invest in alternative funds. This post […]

At the end of 2020 Germany has updated its national investment regulation in order for it to be coordinated with the EU Directive. Also, it is important to note that, generally, the financial supervision of PEFs in Germany is stricter compared to other EU member states. General information According to the institutional framework for PEFs […]

Recently, the Maltese main financial regulator, the MFSA, has introduced a new circular that aims to advance the procedure of obtaining a financial services license. The updates include: The introduction of a termination date; The introduction of a deadline for a response. The deadline for completed applications of VFA service providers was set for September […]

According to the FDI regulation rules in France, it is necessary to receive approval from the Economic Ministry of France before conducting some types of investments there. Last year MEF introduced a new verification procedure for FDI. Its goal is to regulate FDI in critical infrastructure sectors such as energy, healthcare, biotechnology, and others by […]

Right now might be a great time to register an investment company in Singapore. The local authorities have introduced courts for foreign investors, tax incentives, corresponding legislation that supports businesses and their financial stability. All these strategies were put in place in order to attract FDI by developing desirable conditions for international trade in Singapore. […]

In France, the activities of traditional funds are regulated by the rules from: General provisions of monetary funds; Monetary and Financial Codes; Funds’ charters; Funds’ prospectus (if they exist). Investment licensing in France Applicable to some types of NPFs in France, a license from the AMF is necessary before a fund is created. Yet there […]

Coming after the US, Luxembourg is the world’s second-biggest investment center. Its assets are higher than 3 trillion euros which makes Luxembourg the most attractive center for investment funds in Europe. It has been noticed that during the last two years the number of incorporated PEFs in Luxembourg grew significantly. In fact, it almost doubled. […]

The AML / CFT laws have recently been changed in Thailand. Before the new legislation, money laundering precedents were not rare which led to the need of updating the existing laws. The Anti-Money Laundering Office stated that the amount of money laundered reached the point of 12% of Thailand’s GDP. Several illegal types of business […]

If an investor seeks to start a pooled fund in Hong Kong, they have two options to choose from: To create unit trusts (only possible with a trust agreement); To establish a VCC in Hong Kong. In order to establish a non-retail fund in HKSAR its managers have to use entities in other countries. To […]

Sustainability in the financial system can be achieved by coordination. The modern world is changing quickly and requires financial systems to meet its new demands. That is why policymakers and financial supervisors are working to make the systems efficient and resilient. To illustrate, Switzerland and the UK have recently made a public announcement about forming […]

When a PEF is established in Asia, it often has a form of LPS. It also can be an LLP; yet to establish one in Japan the managers must conclude an agreement first. Investment funds in Japan are required to have one general partner and one limited partner. General partners are mainly responsible for managing […]

In 2020 the MSFA issued a circular that explains how Brexit will influence the holders of Maltese licenses that operate in Great Britain through the Internet. The circular provides additional information to the already existing E-Commerce Directive that governs various online commercial activities. Our task today is to examine how the circular will affect people […]

Many of our clients are interested in Belgium as a place for arbitration settlement. The key factor in this is the fact that Belgian jurisdiction does not differentiate whether arbitration is domestic or foreign. Normally, it is decided where the arbitration will take place depending on the arbitration legislation applied in the particular case. The […]

Project financing is a method that is used quite often while planning and performing big infrastructure projects. Due to the high risks and huge capital investments required in such projects, project financing (PF) can sometimes be the only possible way of attracting funds for them. The method of PF analyses the project’s investment qualities and […]

Company acquisition in Switzerland is known to be very advantageous. In fact, this jurisdiction is the best choice in terms of the fastest start of business activities in Europe. Usually, companies in Switzerland are acquired through the process of buying shares or assets. As to mergers, this procedure can sometimes be more difficult. While deciding […]

Related to cryptocurrency trading, Bulgaria is an active player in the fintech industry. This jurisdiction is known for many companies working in the cryptocurrency exchange sector and international conferences taking place. This article will surely be useful for entrepreneurs who are planning to register a crypto-company in Bulgaria; especially for those who are interested in […]

PLLC is one of the most popular legal forms of companies established in Singapore. No wonder because this legal form allows the founders of companies to only bear liability to the extent of the capital amount they have contributed. Moreover, establishing a PLLC means paying fewer taxes in Singapore. For the locals, anyone can register […]