Issue 3 2019

52 Acquisition International - Issue 3 2019 1807AI54 “ACT is proud to have maintained its great focus on registering and maintaining Seychelles legal entities in a fast, reliable and friendly manner for such a long time.” ACT Offshore Limited scoops the Best Corporate & Trust Services Provider – Seychelles title in the 2018 Global Excellence Awards. CT Offshore Limited provides fast, reliable registration of Seychelles International Business Companies, Foundations, Trusts and more. Seychelles is a nation that aims to please. With its very able, well-educated and mostly bilingual population, very good telecommunications, great air and sea links with the rest of the world, perfect time zone and, above all, its familiar and friendly legislation that is being continuously improved, Seychelles is well placed to be a great base for international business ventures and wealth planning. Seychelles legislation is written in clear and simple English so that even non-native English speakers can easily follow. The legislation will be familiar to nearly anyone because it was all inspired by the very best and most popular laws that you have already worked with – in Seychelles we do not re-invent the wheel and instead adapt what works to suit our global clients’ needs and to have a good fit with the local legal system. Early in 1995, ACT Offshore Limited was founded in a corner of Seychelles’ oldest accounting and auditing firms, by one of the firm’s senior partners. Very soon after, it formed the very first Seychelles International Business Company, with company registration number 000001, on the 21st March 1995. The firm quickly went on to formmany more. Internet access was still not generally available in Seychelles – orders were received by phone and fax and documents were prepared using a typewriter – but in those early days, ACT’s founders succeeded in establishing the ground rules that make it the company it is today. By the end of 1999 it was clear that ACT needed to break away from the premises of the auditing firm that had accommodated it from the start. ACT was ready to stand on its own. The main founder moved to Oliaji Trade Centre and began to assemble a new standalone workforce. Though the initial office space was small, it was one of the best in Seychelles and the location was ideal – right in the centre of town near the clock tower and right across the road from the Supreme Court’s apostille office. Today, ACT is proud to have maintained its great focus on registering and maintaining Seychelles legal entities in a fast, reliable and friendly manner for such a long time. While the company has grown immensely since it was founded, international business is facing its biggest wave of challenges yet in the form of the US’s Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) and the follow-on effects on the whole international financial services industry. There will be winners and there will be losers in this big shake up, but ACT is prepared to end up on the winning side and, as always, is looking forward to a bright future. The team at ACT is made up of a group of young and energetic Seychelles’ nationals who are determined to maintain its reputation for being one of the fastest, most reliable and friendliest corporate and trust service providers in Seychelles. This young team is supported by some of the most experienced and knowledgeable accountants and lawyers in Seychelles. The mixture of youth, energy, experience Heading Offshore A and knowledge in is what really sets the firm apart and makes it truly special. ACT works with individuals and service providers from most countries around the globe but its preference is towork with service providers such as lawyers, accountants, and fellow corporate and trust professionals and firms. This helps to overcome language and other international barriers, and to ensure that the ultimate clients receive high-quality advice from the places that are relevant to them. ACT has the privilege of working with some of the most professional and interesting clients and it never takes this lightly – instead, ACT is continuously working to ensure that its clients’ interests always come first.