Isle Of Man Leads As Centre Of Offshore E-Commerce

The Isle of Man has both maintained and improved its competitiveness and
currently stands as one of the world’s leading jurisdictions for e-business,
according to a recently published report.

The findings of the report by Charteris, the IT consulting firm, were announced
by the Isle of Man government last week, and according to the company, the Isle
of Man has been "very successful in maintaining a strong and steady marketing
position on e-business compared with its jurisdictional competitors".

“Amongst those who are aware of the Isle of Man’s positioning, it is seen as a
good example of how to get things right, and the standard to be achieved – a
number of official publications by competitor jurisdictions explicitly say so,"
the report observed.

Charteris noted that the decision to introduce a 0% corporate tax regime,
coupled with a cap on personal income tax at a maximum level of £100,000 per
annum, have been key in transforming the Island into a leader on the e-commerce
front.

Other factors crucial to the growth of e-commerce in the jurisdiction include
increased off-Island competition as a result of the licensing of Cable &
Wireless, which has led to lower bandwidth costs; provision of new world-class
hosting facilities in the form of Manx Telecom’s new Douglas North facility;
evidence of clustering in the online gambling sector and the beginnings of
“stickiness” of operators in the sector; a number of “excellent sales wins”,
including NETeller, Microgaming, Poker Stars and Inca Gold; and clear signs of
significant improvement in collaboration between business and Government on
e-business and economic development issues.

Tim Craine, Isle of Man Government Director of E-Business and Space Commerce,
commented that the Charteris report was a "clear endorsement of the e-business
strategy pursued by Government over the last 5 years".

"The report itself highlights how we have developed the Island’s proposition,
increased our lead over our competitors and placed ourselves in an ideal
position to take our share of new and emerging opportunities in the area of
converging technologies," Mr Craine noted.

"However, we are not complacent and the report also highlights how and where we
can make further improvements," he added.

Liechtenstein Will Resist Moves To End Bank Secrecy, Says Prince

Liechtenstein is unlikely to dispense with its coveted banking secrecy laws any
time soon because such a measure would probably not be approved if put to a
referendum, according to Prince Alois, ruler of the Principality.

Prince Alois told Bloomberg News in an interview published on Monday that
banking secrecy is "very firmly anchored" in Liechtenstein and any proposed
watering down of current laws to satisfy the OECD and the FATF would therefore
be rejected when put to a referendum - a necessary measure under the
Principality's constitution.

"I don't think a draft law or international accord proposing to scrap bank
secrecy would be successful in the foreseeable future. The people would reject
it in a referendum," Prince Alois stated.

Financial services constitutes about 30% of Liechtenstein's gross domestic
product; according to the recent progress report on anti-money laundering
initiatives across the globe, by the US State Department, Liechtenstein’s
well-developed offshore financial services sector, relatively low tax rates,
liberal incorporation and corporate governance rules, and tradition of strict
bank secrecy have contributed significantly to the ability of financial
intermediaries in Liechtenstein to attract funds from abroad.

However, the report went on to note that these same factors have historically
made the country attractive to money launderers.

"Rumours and accusations of misuse of Liechtenstein’s banking system persist in
spite of the progress the principality has made in its efforts against money
laundering," the report stated.