Welcome
By the Hon. Minister of Finance Niko Lee Hang
Talofa & Greetings to all!
It gives me great pleasure as the Minister of Finance to introduce you to Samoa’s international financial facilities.
Established a little over twenty (20) years ago as a means of further diversifying Samoa’s economy, our Centre has proven to be a new and exciting frontier for our future development assisted greatly by Samoa’s natural blessings as an idyllic tropical tourist destination. Thus, the establishment of our offshore financial facilities provides a golden opportunity for the investor to seamlessly combine business with pleasure.
Despite the perceived natural synergy between the tourist sector and financial services, Samoa does recognise that the international nature of any financial operations has the potential to lead to greater scrutiny of our country especially in the current global climate. Thus, it was only after careful consideration of the risks inherent in offshore operations and given our strong and distinctly conservative culture (also known as faa Samoa), that our Government, chose to build our Centre upon an unwavering commitment to maintaining a reputable image. This of course, is consistent with the pristine environment which characterise our islands, besides the rich traditions that are firmly imbued in our culture. As such, Samoa opted to avoid the temptations of achieving short term gains in favour of long term benefits of enduring success. Such stance necessitated the formulation of Government policy, in favour of laws reflecting modern user trends, with appropriate checks and balances to ensure the investor that they placed their investment in a credible jurisdiction.
Samoa’s insistence since inception on such a proactive albeit conservative approach has enabled it to weather turbulent times within the industry, since the turn of the 21st century. As a consequence of offering cross border financial services, Samoa has actively embraced its role as a responsible member of the international community, culminating in securing prominent leadership roles in the continuing OECD proceedings. Furthermore, Samoa is an active member and observer of several peer regulatory groups, that promote adherence to international standards promulgated by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) on Money Laundering, the Basle Committee on Effective Banking Supervision and the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS). Other key features of our Centre conducive to achieving lasting success are our long history of social, economic and political stability, our excellent infrastructure, modern and innovative laws, strong regulatory framework for banks and insurance companies and competitive Government registration fees.
SIFA is also pleased to advise that we have the facility to register a company with its name or constitution in the Chinese language and with our location just east of the international dateline further allows a company to be set up by Asian investors yesterday. This bilingual service in our operations is a reflection of the predominant patronage of Samoa’s International Finance Centre by Asian investors. This is a direct result of Samoa’s close ties with the Peoples Republic of China.
Last but not least, I invite you to browse through our website, and should you decide to take a closer look at our islands, we welcome you! Samoa –You’ll call it Paradise, we call it home.
Soifua ma ia manuia.
Hon. Minister of Finance
Niko Lee Hang
