British Virgin Islands reports captive growth

2003 saw 57 mew captive licenses approved in the British Virgin Islands (BVI), 23% growth over 2002, reports the BVI International Financial Centre (IFC).In total, 2003 saw the BVI reach 307 captives, maintaining it as the fifth largest captive domicile in the world.Of the new licences, all were for U.S. parented captives, with the U.S. representing 94% of all captives on the islands. As well, 33% of the new captives were in the health care or social assistance sector, while 21% were for finance and insurance-related entities.”Besides a marked increase in medical-related captives, another significant change has been the number of innovative blended products being seen, comprising combinations of trusts, funds and insurance products,” states an IFC release.The BVI targets small to mid-size U.S. companies.