With Nigeria being crowned the largest economy in Africa basis a GDP rebasing exercise whose results were announced last week, Nigeria is increasing drawing eyeballs for its higher disposable income and spending than was estimated earlier.
Nigeria has a revised per capita income of $2,688, making it No. 121 in the world on per capita income, up from No. 135 earlier.
Accordingly, Nigerian law firm Banwo & Ighodalo (B&I) and Mauritius based multi-disciplinary professional services firm Abax Corporate Services have joined hands to help Nigerian investors leverage opportunities opening up in Mauritius.
A breakfast meeting, recently organized by the two at the prestigious Radisson Blu hotel in Victoria Island, Lagos, was covered in detail by the local press.
Participants were given a unique opportunity to discover Mauritius, gain insights into its tax, legal and regulatory regimes, as well as share ideas and network.
The audience, comprising financial and investment advisers, bankers, High Net worth individuals (HNIs), and several others with control over direct investments, came together tostudy Mauritius tax regime with a view to making their companies more tax-effective.
An international financial centre, Mauritius is attracting more Nigerian investors and investments advisers because of its little or no tax liabilities, no tax on capital gains, no withholding tax and no control on foreign exchange, among others.
Coming just after the signing of the Double Taxation treaty between Nigeria and Mauritius, the programme is believed to be in line with growing investor interest.
B&I’s Chief Operating Officer (COO), Kemi Ajayi, told LEGAL BUSINESS that the event was instructive with the aim of enlightening the firm’s clients and other targeted guests with latest developments in Mauritius.
“Our goal is to provide them with information that would help them take advantage of opportunities that they may ordinarily overlook or may not be aware of, such as what Mauritius has to offer,” Kemi Ajayi said.
She added that this service is based on the network of clients they own, and their need to structure transactions that will be profitable to them, while increasing their value to shareholders.
“Most Nigerians will ordinarily go to the British Virgin Islands (BVIs) or the Cayman Islands, and Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) don’t particularly support these two as much as they support Mauritius,” Kemi explained.
“To this end, we consider it necessary to sensitise our clients and some target individuals on the opportunities available in Mauritius,” added the COO.
Analysing the partnership with Abax, Kemi explained that Abax wanted an international law firm based in Nigeria which understands the Nigeria’s financial terrain and international best practices due to the huge investments coming out of Nigeria.
About Abax
Headquartered in Mauritius, Abax is renowned for structuring and administration of cross-border investments, with USD 16 billion of client assets under administration. Focussed on delivering business solutions to multinationals and private equity funds investing in Africa and Asia, Abax also operate offices in Australia, Cyprus, Kenya, Singapore, South Africa and United Arab Emirates.
About B&I
Ace law firm B&I, which started operations in 1991, is renowned for its specialised services to clients, including moving with clients into other regions and jurisdictions to help them structure and secure their investments and businesses in these locations.
B&I has expertise in Corporate Finance & Restructuring, Project Finance, Foreign Investment & Divestment, Aviation & International Trade, amongst others.
Image (Financial Times): Nigeria is increasing drawing eyeballs for its higher disposable income and spending than was estimated earlier, with a revised per capita income of $2,688 making it No. 121 in the world, up from No. 135.
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