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Mauritius has throughout the last two decades forged a strong reputation as a premier international financial centre. Contrary to traditional offshore centres, it offers the ability for treaty-based tax planning through its network of double taxation avoidance treaties (DTA). In order to benefit from the DTAs, an investment should be made by a resident of Mauritius, generally through a Global Business Category 1 (GBC1) company.

Kyle Shin, CEO of Korean hedge fund Gen2 Partners, discusses the domestic regulatory regime and the future for hedge funds in the country

Banji Adenusi Tolu Adetomiwa On January 22 2015, the Central Bank of Nigeria issued a directive to Nigerian banks, discount houses and other financial institutions to comply with the requirements of the US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (Fatca), a legislation introduced as part of the US Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act 2010 to check offshore tax evasion by US subjects (account holders). Fatca ensures that the assets and incomes of US account holders held with non-US financial institutions, known as foreign financial institutions (FFIs), are disclosed to the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS). This is in view of the fact that US tax subjects are taxed on their worldwide income. Failure to comply with the reporting obligation renders the US account holder or FFI to a 30% withholding on all US-sourced profits or payments. Already the withholding penalty has become applicable to fixed or determinable annual or periodical (FDAP) payments made on or after July 1 2014, while it took effect on FDAP gross proceeds and pass-through payments on January 1 2015.

In light of recent chaebol activity, overseers at the Korea Corporate Governance Service explain how the market must improve

Klaus Henrik Wiese-Hansen Ernst Ravnaas Since 2012, Norwegian tax authorities have focused on the way Norwegian private equity firms have structured their carried interest payments. A common private equity structure in Norway is that the management of the private equity firm owns shares in the fund or directly in the underlying portfolio company, through a private limited liability investment company. Carried interest for the management is connected to these shares. Under carried interest rules, buy-out executives have until recently paid relatively low capital-gains taxes on profits made from buying and selling companies, in the same way investors or entrepreneurs do, as carried interest has mostly been classified as tax-exempted dividends or capital gains. This is odd, Norwegian tax authorities have argued, given that the money wagered on private equity buy-out deals mostly comes from external investors as opposed to the executives (management) themselves. It makes more sense for these profits to be taxed like ordinary salaries, they argue, at a significantly higher tax rate.

The path to new debt controls in Europe has been gradual and deliberate. Citi's Kepler Geertsema and Jackie Leggett analyse the trend in the context of the restriction on indebtedness covenant

Beatriz Cabal In a move designed to further discourage the use of bearer shares in the Republic of Panama, the Panamanian Superintendency of Banks issued, on December 2 2014, the General Resolution of the Board of Directors SBP-GJD-0009-2014 in which they established measures for the identification of the real owners or final beneficiaries of Panamanian corporations. This latest resolution sets out a list of requirements that all Panamanian banks must comply with in a period of twelve months counted from the issuance of the resolution, for clients whose corporations allow the issuance of bearer shares.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority's (HKMA) bank resolution consultation included the International Swaps and Derivatives Association's (Isda) protocol on temporary stays. Other Asian jurisdictions must follow.

Sotaro Mori On May 30 2014, an act for the partial amendment to the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act or FIEA (Amendment Act) was promulgated. The objective of the Amendment Act is to establish 'measures to enhance the overall attractiveness of Japan's financial and capital markets'. Such measures include, in particular, the promotion of equity crowdfunding in Japan by relaxing the regulation of equity crowdfunding intermediaries. The Amendment Act will become effective by May 30 2015, the exact date to be determined by cabinet order. Equity crowdfunding generally refers to schemes by which start-up companies and investors are connected through the internet so that funds may be collected from a large pool of investors, each generally contributing a small amount. The Amendment Act enables those crowdfunding intermediaries that conduct public offerings or private placements solely through the internet (or other designated electronic means) within the prescribed amounts (to be determined by cabinet order, although the Amendment Act is planned to be applicable for total offerings of less than ¥100 million for which the amount of investment per investor is ¥500,000 or less) to register. They may register as either a Type I crowdfunding operator, where equity interests are offered, or, where fund interests are offered, as a Type II crowdfunding operator. The Amendment Act exempts registered Type I and Type II crowdfunding operators from certain restrictions applicable to other financial business operators, including: (i) restrictions on conducting other business activities; (ii) regulations on posting signs at business offices; and (iii) capital adequacy requirements.

Avril Cole John McDonald Adele Hogan Victor Tsao