With over twenty years’ experience as a jurisdiction of choice for the domiciling, administration and servicing of investment funds, including Exchange Traded (ETF’s), ICAV’s, UCITS, RQFII & QFII UCITS and hedge funds, in addition to being a leading jurisdiction for the establishment of special purpose vehicles (SPV’s) for structured finance transactions, particularly asset securitisation, Ireland continues to deliver an evolving environment facilitating a full range of investment fund products and financial innovation.
Ireland’s robust yet flexible regulatory environment along with its proven track-record as a centre of excellence for complex fund formation and administration, the proactive engagement of the relevant authorities and its "can do" attitude are cited as some of the reasons why so many leading global companies are conducting business in Ireland.
The predominant reasons for Ireland’s popularity as the jurisdiction of choice for over 50% of global leading financial service providers originate from its status as an “on-shore” jurisdiction within the EU and OECD. Complementary to this, Ireland has a favourable corporate tax regime (12.5%), which is aligned to and is one of the lowest in the OECD, which is supported by an advanced corporate legal infrastructure and access to over 72 double taxation treaties.
Ireland also supports almost 50% of the global hedge fund business and is a leading jurisdiction for the domicile of institutional and pension funds with almost €1.8 trillion in assets held over 11,000 funds. It also acts as a major centre for the cross border distribution of UCITS to more than 70 countries. The Irish Stock Exchange (ISE) has also become the largest European exchange for the listing of asset backed and debt securities and provides extensive listing facilities for a wide range of financial products.
