The Limited Partnership Act, 2017 — introduced by lawmakers during last week’s House of Assembly sitting — is designed to allow the Virgin Islands to market limited partnerships as an international investment vehicle.
A limited partnership happens when two or more people unite to form a business, but one or more is liable only for the amount of money they have invested.
Currently, LPs in the VI are regulated by the Partnership Act, 1996. This new bill — which has yet to be Gazetted — would overhaul that legislation and is supposed to position the territory to better compete for LPs with other offshore jurisdictions.
Some of these jurisdictions have significantly improved their LP models in recent years, according to the Financial Services Commission Business Development Legislative Subcommittee.
“Limited partnerships have become an internationally preferred structure for investment activity and are frequently used as a vehicle for establishing and promoting private equity funds, other investment structures and joint ventures,” an FSCBDLS and BVI Finance Limited statement read. “This new bill, once enacted, will ensure that we remain competitive as well as enhance the reputation of the BVI as a leading international business and finance centre.”
The FSC’s most recent statistical bulletin reported that 22 limited partnerships formed in the VI in the second quarter of 2017, bringing the total number of active LPs in the territory to 712.
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