The BSX's International Listing Regulations contain a list of recognised jurisdictions for funds. Funds which are not established in a recognised jurisdiction must be restricted to "qualified investors".
Mr W. William A. Woods, CEO of The BSX stated "The relevance of this recognition is that investment funds which are established in Mauritius and approved by MOBAA can now be listed on The BSX, without having to restrict the fund to institutional investors only. This status reflects the level and credibility of MOBAA's regulatory regime for Mauritian funds, which is broadly equivalent to the level of regulation in Bermuda, and gives The BSX a competitive advantage over other exchanges for the listing of investment funds which are domiciled in Mauritius".
Mauritius is a rapidly expanding offshore jurisdiction in the Indian Ocean. Both the Bank of Bermuda and Bermuda Commercial Bank now have permanent representation there. In the last two years, Mauritius has become the jurisdiction of choice for investment into India, both foreign direct investment and investment funds. This is because Mauritius has a favourable tax double treaty with India which reduces the withholding tax on dividends and removes the capital gains tax payable in India. Until recently it has been standard practice with India funds for the Mauritian entity to be a subsidiary of a holding company which is incorporated in another jurisdiction, such as Bermuda, and it is the holding company which is listed. However, a recent tax ruling in India has raised some concerns on the effectiveness of the Mauritius-India double tax treaty where the Mauritian entity is merely a subsidiary and not an independent operating company.
This has led fund managers to seek to list the Mauritian mutual fund company. The other leading exchanges currently require that a Mauritian incorporated fund be restricted to institutional investors with a minimum initial investment size of $100,000. The recognition of Mauritius thus distinguishes The BSX from other exchanges for the listing of investment funds which are domiciled in Mauritius.
For further information about The BSX please contact Mr. William Woods or Greg Wojciechowski on1-441- 292-7212