Bermuda does not encourage tax evasion - asserts Bermuda BDA, a view shared by Healy Consultants

HAMILTON, Bermuda - April 12, 2016 - PRLog -- In the wake of the massive leak of confidential documents from Mossack Fonseca, a Panamanian law firm, which have sparked probes around the globe; Bermuda Business Development Agency has come out strongly to ascertain that Bermuda is different and should not be lumped together with other offshore centres that encourage tax evasion.

In the past week Bermuda was once again caught up in an indiscriminate hail of accusations loosely aimed at offshore financial centres after the global exposé of tax avoidance by wealthy individuals christened "the Panama Papers". Although Bermuda was not directly mentioned in the feature, the country still came under fire amid the international outrage that ensued.

Speaking last week in reaction to the panama papers leak, the spokesperson for the Business Development Agency said that the reporting perpetuates the myth that all offshore financial centres are the same.

"The fact is Bermuda is different. While there may be businesses, service providers and lax regulatory environments around the world that enable illegal tax evasion, Bermuda is not one of them," said the DBA spokesperson.

"Bermuda has an extremely positive global reputation built on transparency, compliance and co-operation; these attributes have been differentiating hallmarks of the jurisdiction for decades" she concluded.

A statement released by the BDA also stated that Bermuda understands and embraces the worldwide movement towards greater financial transparency and regulatory co-operation. The country does not have laws that promote and protect banking secrecy and complies with global anti-money-laundering directives and antiterrorist financing standards.

Bermuda currently has tax-transparency agreements with over 90 countries globally, including the United Kingdom, which allow the countries to access information on any private individual or legal entity they suspect of avoiding taxes or hiding assets for criminal reasons.

Healy Consultants is a professional corporate services provider headquartered in Singapore and with a presence in Bermuda since the year 2003. The company aides global entrepreneurs looking to establish their international businesses in different sectors of the economy with, among others, company registration, tax and vat registration, assistance with obtaining business licenses and official business addresses, opening a corporate and merchant bank account and obtaining work or residence visas.