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Québec
Québec’s New Transparency Rules for Businesses’ Ultimate Beneficial Owners
24 Maggio 2023
- Compliance
- Investimenti
Summary
The Loi visant principalement à améliorer la transparence des entreprises came into force in Québec on March 31, 2023, imposing new obligations on businesses in the province. The law requires businesses to disclose information about their ultimate beneficial owners (UBOs) to the Registraire des entreprises. UBOs are individuals who possess voting rights, fair market value of shares, or de facto control over the business. Certain entities are exempt from disclosing their UBOs. The information disclosed will be accessible to the public, except for the date of birth and, in some cases, the home address.
On March 31, 2023, the Loi visant principalement à améliorer la transparence des entreprises (Act mainly to improve the transparency of enterprises) came into force in Québec, imposing new obligations for businesses in the province.
The new law modifies the Loi sur la publicité légale des entreprises (Act respecting the legal publicity of entreprises) and seeks to increase corporate transparency, namely by requiring businesses to provide to the Registraire des entreprises (the “REQ”) information about their bénéficiaires ultimes, i.e. ultimate beneficial owners (“UBO”).
An UBO is, namely, any individual who:
- possesses at least 25% of voting rights;
- possesses at least 25% of the fair market value of all shares; or
- has enough influence to exercise de facto control of the business.
All UBOs of a business must be disclosed, although some entities such as non-profit organizations, legal persons established in public interest, public corporations, financial institutions and trust companies are not required to disclose their UBOs. For every UBO, the following information is required to be communicated to the REQ:
- names and aliases;
- home address (and optionally, business address);
- date of birth;
- type of control exercised or percentage of shares, interests, or units held;
- date at which he/she became an UBO and date at which he/she ceased to be one.
Most of this information will be accessible to the public, with the exceptions of the date of birth and, in cases where a business address is provided, the home address. The names and home addresses of minors are also hidden from public access.
By providing access to shareholder information, the Province of Québec was already the only Canadian corporate jurisdiction that required public disclosure of the names and domiciles of the three principal shareholders. The province again takes the lead by forcing disclosure of corporations’ UBOs. For now, in the rest of Canada, the identity of UBOs for privately held companies is not a matter of public record.
Entities doing business in Québec should ensure to conduct a proper examination of their organizational structure, so as to correctly and fully disclose the information required by the new transparency rules. Any failure to do so can lead to immediate revocation of the business’ registration under the REQ, as well as to fines ranging from CAD 1,000 to CAD 40,000.
The new rules only require the businesses themselves to take the necessary measures to confirm the identities of their UBOs. Professional advisers do not have any due diligence obligations in this regard.
Sotto la presidenza vietnamita dell’Associazione delle nazioni del Sud-est asiatico (ASEAN), dopo otto anni di negoziati i dieci Stati membri dell’ASEAN (Brunei, Cambogia, Filippine, Indonesia, Laos, Malesia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailandia, Vietnam) il 15 novembre 2020 hanno firmato un clamoroso accordo di libero scambio (FTA) con Cina, Corea del Sud, Giappone, Australia e Nuova Zelanda, denominato Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).
La comunità economica dell’ASEAN è un’area di libero scambio avviata nel 2015 tra i suddetti dieci membri dell’omonima associazione, che comprende un PIL aggregato di 2,6 trilioni di dollari e oltre 622 milioni di persone. L’ASEAN è il principale partner commerciale della Cina, con l’Unione Europea scivolata al secondo posto.
A differenza dell’Eurozona e dell’Unione Europea, l’ASEAN non ha una moneta unica, né istituzioni comuni, come la Commissione Europea, il Parlamento e il Consiglio. Analogamente a quanto accade nell’UE, tuttavia, un singolo membro detiene una presidenza a rotazione.
Singoli Paesi ASEAN, come Vietnam e Singapore, hanno recentemente stipulato accordi di libero scambio con l’Unione Europea, mentre l’intero blocco ASEAN aveva e ha tuttora in essere i cosiddetti accordi “più uno” con altri Paesi dell’area, ovvero la Repubblica Popolare Cinese, Hong Kong, la Repubblica di Corea,, il Giappone, l’India e l’Australia e la Nuova Zelanda insieme.
Ad eccezione dell’India, tutti gli altri Paesi con accordi “più uno” con l’ASEAN fanno ora parte dell’RCEP, che supererà progressivamente i singoli FTA attraverso l’armonizzazione delle regole, soprattutto quelle relative all’origine dei prodotti.
I negoziati RCEP sono accelerati con la decisione degli Stati Uniti d’America di ritirarsi dal Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement (TPP) con l’elezione del presidente Trump nel 2016 (anche se vale la pena di ricordare che anche gran parte del partito democratico degli Stati Uniti si era ai tempi opposta al TPP). Il TPP sarebbe stato quindi il più grande accordo di libero scambio di sempre e, come suggerisce il nome, avrebbe messo insieme dodici nazioni affacciate sull’Oceano Pacifico, ossia Australia, Brunei, Canada, Cile, Giappone, Malesia, Messico, Nuova Zelanda, Perù, Singapore, Vietnam e appunto Stati Uniti. Con l’esclusione di questi ultimi, gli altri undici hanno comunque firmato un accordo simile, denominato Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). Il CPTPP è stato tuttavia ratificato solo da sette dei suoi firmatari e chiaramente non ne fa parte la più grande economia e partner più significativo di tutti. Allo stesso tempo, sia l’abortito TPP, sia il CPTPP escludono enfaticamente la Cina.
Il peso del RCEP è quindi evidentemente maggiore, in quanto nei Paesi firmatari, che rappresentano circa il 30% del PIL mondiale, vivono 2,1 miliardi di persone. E la porta per l’India con i suoi 1,4 miliardi di persone e 2,6 trilioni di dollari di PIL rimane aperta, hanno affermato gli altri membri.
Come la maggior parte degli accordi di libero scambio, l’obiettivo dell’RCEP è abbassare le tariffe, facilitare gli scambi di beni e servizi e promuovere gli investimenti. L’accordo affronta brevemente la tutela dei diritti di proprietà intellettuale, ma non fa menzione della tutela dell’ambiente e dei diritti dei lavoratori. I suoi firmatari comprendono economie molto avanzate, come quella di Singapore, e piuttosto povere, come quella della Cambogia.
Il significato dell’RCEP in questo momento è probabilmente più simbolico che tangibile. Anche se si stima che circa il 90% delle tariffe sarà abolito, ciò avverrà solo in un periodo di venti anni dall’entrata in vigore, cosa che accadrà solo dopo la ratifica. Inoltre, il settore dei servizi e soprattutto quello agricolo non rappresentano il fulcro dell’accordo e pertanto saranno ancora soggetti a barriere, regole e restrizioni nazionali. Ciononostante, si stima che, anche in questi tempi di pandemia, l’RCEP contribuirà annualmente al PIL mondiale per circa 40 miliardi di dollari in più rispetto al CPTPP (186 miliardi di dollari contro 147 miliardi di dollari) per dieci anni consecutivi.
Il suo impatto immediato è geopolitico. Sebbene i firmatari non siano affatto alleati di ferro (si pensi alle controversie territoriali sul Mar Cinese Meridionale, per esempio), il messaggio è chiaro:
- La maggior parte di questa parte del mondo ha affrontato la pandemia di Covid-19 molto bene, ma non può permettersi di aprire le sue frontiere a europei e americani in tempi brevi, per timore che il virus si diffonda di nuovo. Deve quindi cercare di appianare le tensioni interne, se vuole vedere nelle sue economie alcuni segnali positivi dati dal commercio privato, oltre alla spesa pubblica in deficit (non sempre “buona”). La maggior parte di questi Paesi fa molto affidamento sui talenti, sui turisti, sui beni, sui servizi e persino sul supporto strategico e militare dell’Occidente, ma è realista sul fatto che, a meno che il tanto pubblicizzato vaccino non funzioni molto bene e molto presto, l’Occidente lotterà con questo coronavirus per lunghi mesi, se non anni.
- Il multilateralismo è fondamentale e l’isolazionismo è pericoloso. Il blocco ASEAN e il duo Australia-Nuova Zelanda lavorano esattamente in questa direzione pacifica e favorevole agli affari.
Il sito web ufficiale dell’ASEAN (https://asean.org/?static_post=rcep-regional-comprehensive-economic-partnership) è molto chiaro al riguardo e afferma, infatti, che:
L’RCEP fornirà un quadro volto ad abbassare le barriere commerciali e garantire un migliore accesso al mercato di beni e servizi per le imprese della regione, attraverso:
- Il riconoscimento della centralità dell’ASEAN nell’architettura economica regionale e degli interessi dei partner dell’ASEAN nel potenziamento dell’integrazione economica e nel rafforzamento della cooperazione economica tra i Paesi partecipanti agli FTA;
- La facilitazione del commercio e degl’investimenti e maggiore trasparenza nelle relazioni commerciali e di investimento tra i Paesi partecipanti, nonché maggiore coinvolgimento delle PMI nelle catene di valore globali e regionali; e
- L’ampliamento degli impegni economici dell’ASEAN con i suoi partner.
L’RCEP riconosce l’importanza dell’inclusività, in particolare per consentire alle PMI di sfruttare l’accordo e far fronte alle sfide derivanti dalla globalizzazione e dalla liberalizzazione del commercio. Le PMI (comprese le microimprese) costituiscono più del 90% delle imprese dei firmatari dell’RCEP e sono importanti per lo sviluppo endogeno dell’economia di ogni Paese. Allo stesso tempo, l’RCEP è volto a fornire politiche economiche regionali eque a vantaggio sia dell’ASEAN, sia dei suoi partner.
Tuttavia, il momento è favorevole anche per le imprese dell’UE. Come ricordato, l’UE ha in essere accordi di libero scambio con Singapore, Corea del Sud, Vietnam, un accordo di partenariato economico con il Giappone e sta negoziando separatamente sia con l’Australia, sia con la Nuova Zelanda.
In generale, tutti questi accordi creano regole comuni per tutti gli attori coinvolti, rendendo così più semplice per le aziende commerciare in diversi territori. Con le avvertenze già rapidamente enucleate sull’entrata in vigore e sulle regole di origine, i Paesi che hanno firmato un accordo di libero scambio con l’UE e l’RCEP, in particolare Singapore, un importante hub di lingua inglese, che si colloca al primo posto in Asia orientale nell’indice dello Stato di diritto (terzo nella regione dopo Nuova Zelanda e Australia e dodicesimo in tutto il mondo: https://worldjusticeproject.org/sites/default/files/documents/Singapore%20-%202020%20WJP%20Rule%20of%20Law%20Index%20Country%20Press%20Release.pdf), potrebbero collegare entrambe le regioni e facilitare il commercio globale anche in questo difficile periodo storico.
Il tasso di cambio è da sempre questione centrale nell’economia iraniana, basata principalmente sul settore del petrolio. A tal proposito, negli ultimi decenni le autorità governative hanno adottato diversi regolamenti aventi tutti lo scopo di gestire e calmierare l’impatto delle fluttuazioni del tasso di cambio sull’economia reale iraniana.
La situazione del mercato monetario, però, nonostante la conclusione dell’accordo sul nucleare iraniano (PACG – Piano d’azione congiunto globale) e la revoca delle sanzioni economiche contro l’Iran, non è migliorata. Negli ultimi mesi, infatti, il mercato monetario iraniano ha visto crescere improvvisamente la domanda di valute straniere come il Dollaro americano (“USD”) e l’Euro. Tale sviluppo caotico, conosciuto anche come “foreign currency rate jump crisis”, ha portato all’applicazione di una nuova norma da parte delle autorità iraniane al fine di uniformare il tasso di cambio per le valute.
Una Nuova Norma
Alla luce di quanto appena visto, l’11 aprile 2018 il Consiglio dei Ministri ha adottato una legge mirata a regolare e organizzare il mercato valutario in Iran. La novità più importante è il paragrafo 5, il quale stabilisce un tasso fisso di cambio – il “Nerkh Mobadelee” – pari a 42,000 IRR per dollaro.
Oltre a questo paragrafo, bisogna tenere in considerazione altre disposizioni normative che hanno riguardato questo nuovo regime monetario.
Importazione ed Esportazione di Beni e Servizi
Secondo il par. 1 della legge appena vista, qualsiasi ordine per l’importazione di beni in Iran – anche attraverso Free Trade Zones – deve essere soggetta a registrazione. La comunicazione n. 9 rilasciata dalla Banca Centrale dell’Iran (“CBI”) il 14 aprile 2018 ha precisato che questa registrazione è un prerequisito per la fornitura di qualsiasi valuta straniera da utilizzare per portare a termine l’acquisto di beni e servizi dall’estero.
La valuta richiesta per gli ordini registrati sarà emessa attraverso il sistema bancario, in conformità ai regolamenti predisposti dalla CBI. Per l’attuazione di questo processo è stata sviluppata una piattaforma unificata per il cambio valuta, chiamata “NIMA”, all’interno della quale interagiscono i quattro operatori principali: importatori di beni e servizi in qualità di acquirenti di valuta, esportatori di beni e servizi in qualità di fornitori di valuta, banche e uffici di cambio in qualità d’intermediari che dirigono la valuta dai fornitori ai richiedenti e infine l’autorità di settore che determina il tasso di cambio e le valute di preferenza. In altre parole, importatori ed esportatori possono comprare o vendere valuta unicamente attraverso tale piattaforma NIMA.
In aggiunta, quando la valuta in questione è fornita dalla CBI sulla base del Nerkh Mobadelee (ovvero, il tasso di cambio fissato dal governo) ma la fattura non è ancora stata emessa, i documenti di spedizione devono essere presentati alla banca entro massimo sei mesi dall’emissione della moneta. Nel caso in cui i documenti di spedizione siano presentati tardivamente, la loro ammissione resta soggetta al parere del CBI e al pagamento della differenza tra il tasso di cambio della valuta al momento dell’emissione del conto e quello alla data di comunicazione dei documenti di spedizione alla banca (ove il tasso sia aumentato nel frattempo).
Valuta Straniera per i Viaggi all’Estero
La Comunicazione n. 2 della CBI chiarisce che la valuta straniera per i viaggi all’estero sarà erogata ai passeggeri alle frontiere aeroportuali solo una volta all’anno per un importo ma di Euro 1,000 (o l’equivalente in altra valuta). L’importo di valute straniere fornite ai passeggeri diretti in paesi confinanti e paesi del Common-Wealth, eccetto l’Iraq, è di 500 Euro (o l’equivalente in altra valuta). Tale valuta straniera può essere erogata solamente a passeggeri muniti di passaporto iraniano.
I passeggeri stranieri possono fare ingresso in Iran con un massimo di Euro 10,000 (o equivalente in altra valuta straniera); in caso di somma superiore, saranno tenuti a effettuare una dichiarazione in linea con le richieste della CBI.
Assegnazione di valuta straniera nei contratti di finanziamento
La Comunicazione n. 4 del 12 aprile 2018 della CBI regolamenta i contratti di finanziamento a seguito del nuovo assetto monetario, disponendo che tutti i pagamenti relativi a contratti di finanziamento (inclusi i pagamenti anticipati, il pagamento dei costi, ecc.) siano conformi al nuovo tasso di 42.000,00 IRR per ogni USD.
In aggiunta, per quanto riguarda i progetti che prevedono un’importazione di valuta straniera nel paese, questi dovranno prevedere altresì una fornitura rilevante di valuta straniera per far fronte ai pagamenti previsti.
Il Cambio della Valuta
La nuova normativa sopra esposta, al paragrafo 13, prevede inoltre alcune restrizioni sulle attività condotte dai cambia-valuta. In tale ambito, qualsiasi operazione di cambio e commercio della valuta straniera non conforme alle condizioni fornite dalla CBI verrà qualificata come contrabbando e perseguita ai sensi della legge.
Conclusione
Alla luce di tutto quanto appena visto, il pagamento di tutte le transazioni di import-export riguardanti l’Iran, dovrà essere effettuato attraverso un canale di controllo governativo, guidato dalla Banca Centrale dell’Iran. L’assegnazione della valuta deve essere soggetta a una ratifica di registrazione d’ordine e accettazione da parte della CBI.
Qualsiasi azienda che intenda operare in Iran dovrà uniformarsi a questa regolamentazione, almeno fino alla prossima modifica legislativa sul tema.
Il presidente Erdogan ha emanato un decreto presidenziale che impone l’uso obbligatorio della Lira Turca negli accordi conclusi tra soggetti residenti in Turchia. Il decreto (d’ora innanzi: Decreto), che modifica il decreto sulla protezione del valore della lira turca, è stato pubblicato sulla Gazzetta Ufficiale ed è entrato in vigore il 13 settembre 2018.
Il Decreto impone l’uso della Lira Turca per l’acquisto e la vendita di tutti i tipi di beni, merci, servizi e immobili. Tutti i contratti di affitto di veicoli, immobili e qualunque altro tipo di beni devono essere effettuati utilizzando le Lire Turche. Il Decreto stabilisce inoltre che i contratti non possono fare riferimento al tasso di cambio della Lira Turca con una valuta straniera.
Andiamo a vedere punto per punto le modifiche introdotte dal regolamento.
Impossibilità di utilizzare le valute straniere nei contratti nazionali
Il Decreto, come già anticipato, prevede che tutti i pagamenti relativi a contratti tra soggetti residenti in Turchia devono essere obbligatoriamente effettuati in Lire Turche, sia che riguardino persone giuridiche, sia che riguardino persone fisiche.
Inoltre, anche tutti i contratti aventi ad oggetto immobili dovranno essere effettuate in Lire Turche, senza alcuna possibilità di far riferimento a valute estere.
Tutti i contratti devono essere modificati entro 30 giorni
Il Decreto prevede, inoltre, che tutti i contratti tra soggetti residenti in Turchia stipulati prima del 13 settembre 2018 devono essere modificati e i pagamenti devono essere convertiti in Lire Turche entro 30 giorni dalla data di pubblicazione del Decreto (13 settembre 2018): ciò significa che tutti i contratti tra soggetti residenti, basati su valute straniere devono essere modificati entro il 14 ottobre 2018, senza – come già visto – poter vincolare gli importi contrattuali al tasso di cambio con qualsivoglia valuta estera.
Le parti, quindi, sono libere di concordare qualsiasi tasso di cambio nel momento in cui modificano il contratto (ossia entro il 14 ottobre), ma non possono vincolare il contenuto del contratto alle oscillazioni future.
Importazione ed esportazione di beni e servizi
Il nuovo Decreto non ha alcun impatto sui contratti di import-export, a patto che una delle parti del contratto non sia residente in Turchia. Tuttavia si deve notare che il Decreto può avere un impatto sulle controllate turche di società multinazionali che commerciano in valuta straniera.
Non vi è alcuna limitazione nel portare valuta estera nel paese.
Sanzioni
La nuova politica monetaria non prevede alcuna sanzione penale o amministrativa. È probabile che queste vengano adottate dalle nuove regolamentazioni, che dovranno implementare alcuni aspetti pratici per la completa applicazione del Decreto. È opportuno però sottolineare che, in caso di mancata conversione il Lire Turche di un contratto stipulato in valuta straniera, sarà facile per una delle due parti richiedere al Tribunale la modifica del contratto.
Conclusioni
Questo Decreto è uno dei provvedimenti presi dal governo turco per sostenere la Lira Turca, in grande difficoltà. Il crollo del valore della Lira Turca, infatti, è al centro dei provvedimenti governativi degli ultimi 6 mesi, interamente volti a cercare di arginarne il calo del valore.
Fino al 1983 in Turchia erano in vigore politiche simili, sempre allo scopo di proteggere la moneta locale, che poi sono state eliminate dopo le elezioni del 1983 e la nuova visione liberale. Si trattava, però, di un’epoca ed un’economia diversa rispetto a oggi.
Non è ancora chiaro se questo Decreto possa o meno portare ad un miglioramento, ma quello che è sicuro è che gli investitori stranieri (o locali finanziati da istituzioni straniere) dovranno modificare i loro contratti in vigore stipulati in valute estere, convertendoli in Lire Turche.
Convertible notes, SAFE Agreements, participative financial instruments: the growing interest in start-up investing has led to a progressive differentiation both in investment strategies and, as a consequence, in legal/contractual instruments so to best suit the investors’ needs.
The introduction of these tools, specific to foreign ecosystems such as the Silicon Valley, and the difficulties in sourcing sufficient capitals to back the development of start-up companies, in particular with regard to the early/seed stage, has encouraged several players to opt for instruments alternative to equity investment, either developed “nationally” or under common law systems.
This mind-set has many positive side effects since it opened up the capital raising landscape that now includes venture capital funds, business angels networks, family offices and even club deals composed of small investors willing to buy into start-ups (mostly over the incubation/acceleration stage) with an injection of capital for a relatively small amount of shares.
In Italy, this trend towards non-equity or demi-equity instruments had two major results: it contributed to dust off legal instruments first introduced by the latest comprehensive reform of the Italian company law in 2004 (e.g. participative financial instruments – in Italian: Strumenti Finanziari di Partecipazione or SFP – art. 2346, par. 6 of the Italian Civil Code); and it fostered the creation of new contractual models plainly inspired by well-known instruments used in the Silicon Valley. That is the case of Convertible Notes and SAFE Agreements (Simple Agreement for Future Equity).
These instruments, together with the SFPs, have a trait in common: they all require a cash investment which is meant to be converted to equity at a specific milestone or on a pre-set date. On the other hand, none of them entails the possibility for an investor to hold a participation as a shareholder (at least not straightaway). Investors become stakeholders instead and they may hold as many administrative/patrimonial rights as they manage to negotiate with the company or with the founders themselves as well as depending on the specific contractual instrument they selected. It is important to point out that profits distribution rights are not included among those subject to negotiation since innovative start-ups (namely early-stage companies that meet certain criteria set by the law: i.e. high level technology of the company’s scope, R&D expenditure or number of graduates employed, etc.) are prevented from distributing profits for the first five years according the pertaining Italian regulation (see art. 25, par. 2 of the D.L. 179/2012).
Convertible Note and SFP
Starting off with convertible notes: these instruments are extremely flexible and mainly used by club deals and family offices. They are structured as a hybrid between convertible obligations and traditional loans. Investors in facts lend money to a start-up on a specific interest rate and according to a contract where the parties have previously set out terms and conditions that would preside over their relationship. The investment is classified as a liability of the company to third parties and, more specifically, as a long term liability.
The parties set two different dates, one for the conversion of the credit to equity and another one for the possible payback (in case the conversion has not been exercised). Sometimes the parties decide to leave the payback aside and set directly the date of the conversion to equity thus transforming the instrument from a demi-loan to an option on a prospective capital increase, where the money invested in the company would be considered as the price of the option; or even an obligation that can be converted to shares, an hypothesis admitted by eminent scholars not only for corporations, but also for limited liability companies.
The conversion date is usually set before the reimbursements, for the latter is meant as the last resort in the event the capital increase has not been approved by the company and provided that the parties had previously agreed upon such possibility. Furthermore, the reimbursement might be considered as a consequence of certain events, in particular when there is a payback request for cause or when a party violates any of the representations and warranties set out in the contract. In order to avoid unpleasant surprises, it is “customary” to provide for a future capital increase specifically dedicated to the investor – as well as an obligation for the investor to convert his loan – directly in the contract. The parties are free to determine whether the conversion should take place on a certain date or subject to the company meeting specific milestones such as: turnover goals, the achievement of specific results both economically and with reference to the development of its tangible/intangible technological assets (for instance, the development of software or the patenting of an invention). The actual conversion may take place at once or in instalments through a resolution of the shareholders to schedule the capital increase in two or more tranches. The convertible note must provide for a price per share for the conversion based on the so-called pre-money valuation; it is quite usual to set also a conversion discount, that is a price per share lower than the per share price paid by other investors in that round.
SAFE Agreement
The SAFE Agreement – developed and used by the world-renowned California-based incubator “Y Combinator” – is neither a debt instrument, unlike convertible notes, nor an equity one since it does not give its holder the right to profit sharing or the right to vote as a shareholder. It is rather a financial instrument that incorporates a prospective right to buy out preferred shares.
Although SAFE Agreements do not have an Italian counterpart, SFPs may look alike when they are “designed” as semi-equity participative instrument (without payback) and used to collect capitals to be allocated in a specific equity reserve, which should be used only to cover the company’s operating losses and be considered otherwise unavailable. However, the extent of this unavailability is still a matter of debate among scholars and the possibility for the parties to a SFP agreement to determine that the reserve at issue might only be used upon depletion of the others (legal reserve fund included) is not undisputed as well. In one of the latest ruling on the matter, the judge has indeed opted for the availability of the reserve created upon issuance of the SFPs on account of its statutory nature, stating that it can therefore be depleted before legal reserve fund and equity (Court of Naples, 25/2/2016). This is basically the main reason why SAFE agreements cannot be implemented tout court in Italy.
In any case, the Italian Civil Code allows the possibility to design the SFPs so as to meet specific requirements since they are essentially “empty boxes” that can be filled by the parties based on the needs of either the issuing start-up company and/or the investors willing to fund it. In fact, the law only sets two guidelines: i) it excludes that the SFP could grant its holder the right to vote as a shareholder; ii) it establishes that these instruments can be endowed with patrimonial or even administrative rights. The possibility for a company to issue SFPs must be specified in the articles of association/bylaws, which refers to a future extraordinary meeting of the shareholders for the adoption of the pertaining regulation, which will also set out the functioning rules of the special assembly dedicated to the holders of SFPs.
Turning to the SAFE Agreement, the American model sets a conversion price that cannot exceed a certain cap, according to which the company assigns shares on a capital increase (i.e. SAFE preferred) with privileged rights and with restrictions closely similar to those typical of standard “preferred shares”. Furthermore, it also sets a discounted conversation price which, in the US experience, is in the range of 15-20%, while there no provision as to a future deadline for paying the investment back.
Nothing prohibits to adapt the regulation of the SFPs to the best practice resulted from the implementation of the SAFE Agreement in the US. That is the case of the “acceleration” clauses that allow the investor to convert its investment before the original date set out in the agreement in case of equity-financing/liquidity events, namely the acquisition of the start-up or a capital increase that brings new investors in. This type of clauses is also often used in convertible notes. Some clauses, on the contrary, cannot be transferred into a SFP. That is the case of the clauses that regard the payback in relation to dissolution events such as: (i) the voluntary suspension of the business activity of the company; (ii) the transfer of the company’s assets to benefit the creditors or (iii) the company’s winding-up process both voluntary and not. According to Italian law, the winding-up due to a total loss of equity implies the possibility to use the reserve destined to SFPs with the consequent loss of the money invested by the SFP holders. Hence the common practice – still debated among scholars – that sees the possibility to use the reserves created upon issuance of the SFPs subordinated to the complete depletion of the other reserves, legal reserve fund included.
Eventually, these practices have taken hold over the last few years since they are meant to provide the investors with more and more flexibility when dealing with financial/investment instruments as those described above. They represent in fact an opportunity for both start-ups, that can obtain capital on the short period, and investors, who can grade their entrepreneurial risk allocating their investment as a debt or not – depending on the chosen instruments – with a view to a conversion to equity that will eventually depend on several factors, not least the company’s business metrics and economical standing.
In conclusion, the dynamism of this sector and the recent intervention of the Italian legislator show that there is plenty of room for growth in the Italian start-up ecosystem.
The author of this post is Milena Prisco.
In this post we will briefly outline some legal aspects related to e-commerce in Iran, starting from the definition of the average Iranian user and main characteristics and advantages of e-commerce in the Islamic Republic, which is attracting several foreign investors.
We will then analyze the requirements for the issuance of online business licenses in Iran, which is mandatory in order to open an e-shop. Finally we will take a look at some successful examples of online business in Iran.
The average Iranian user
Some statistics regarding Iranian users active in the virtual space are useful for understanding the size of the Iranian market, and why it is attracting several investors.
According to the “Internet Data and Statistics”, Iran is the thirteenth country for number of internet users, as 57 million of Iranian (on 83 million of Iran’s population) have access to internet (approximately the 68% of the population), but Government sources believe these numbers are underestimated.
What matters for the purpose of this analysis, however, is that approximatively the 58% of the internet users search on the Internet is about information on goods and services and that – until the end of Azar 1394 (December 2015) – the average internet users are male (58%) and young (47% between 20 and 29 years old).
In addition, the 42% of the Iranian internet users are involved in electronic commerce and the 13% use the e-banking services.
Online Business Licenses in Iran
Whether carried out in the traditional way or electronically, all the businesses need a business-license to operate on the Iranian market. The most important law governing is the Union System Act 1971, amended in 1980, 2003 and in 2013, which provides that the business license is issued by the competent union or legal authority.
E-commerce is no exception, therefore all those who intend to sell goods or provide services using the virtual space must acquire a business license.
On February 19th, 2017 the Iranian Government issued an Executive Regulation in regard to the Issuance of License and Supervision on Businesses in Virtual Space and Network Marketing, dividing the activities in virtual space into two categories:
- Virtual Business;
- Network Marketing.
According to Paragraph 1 in Article 1, Virtual Business is a business established by any natural or legal person in order to provide products (goods or services) directly or indirectly on a wholesale or retail basis, to wholesalers, retailers and consumers through telecommunication means such as websites and digital software (applications).
According to Paragraph 2 of Article 1, Network Marketing is a method for selling products based on which the Network Marketing company uses its website to organize the sellers in order to sell their products directly to consumers in a place far from the regular business location. Through this method, each seller can introduce another marketer as it subset and create a multi-product sales group in order to increase sales.
The competent authority for issuance of licenses in this regard is the National Union. Therefore, any person who intends to acquire a license in order to have its activities carried out online, must apply on the website of Center for Development of Electronic Commerce (an organ of the Ministry of Industry, Mine and Commerce, hereinafter: “CDEC” – www.enamad.ir) in order to acquire the Reliance Symbol, which is a symbol necessary to certify the identity and competence of online activities.
Requirements for the Online Business License
Article 3 of the Executive Regulation on Issuance of License and Supervision on Businesses in Virtual Space and Network Marketing, which governs the Issuance of Online Business Licenses in Iran, provides that business licenses shall be issued according to the following procedure:
- Establishment of the virtual business conforming to the checklists provided by the CDEC.
- Registration of application in E-Namad website (then the CDEC automatically submits the application to the unions’ website).
- Upload of the required documents, which we will list below.
- Issuance and submission of the license (after verifying the uploaded documents and the original copies thereof) to the applicant within 15 days and submission of the license information to E-Namad website.
- Grant of Electronic Reliance Symbol concurrent with issuance of the license.
Furthermore, the said Regulation specifies the required documents for issuance of business license, as follows:
- Office or legal domicile address of the applicant;
- Negative criminal record from the Police;
- Certificate of the relevant Tax Organization regarding tax compliance;
- Certificate for attendance in educational courses of commerce and business;
- Confirmation of specialized features regarding virtual business issued by the CDED;
- Photocopy of ID-card/Company-Registration number, plus passport/work-permit for foreigners;
- Photocopy of Military Service Termination Card or Permanent or Medical Exemption Card for men under 50 or a Student Certificate.
In addition to those, the Regulation provides some other documents for particular sectors, so it is advisable to contact an Iranian expert in the matter to verify the compliance with all applicable regulations. For instance, the Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization of Iran has set out some specific criteria for travel and tourism activities in the virtual space, so travel agency services, accommodation centers, private entities and other tourism services must follow a special procedure to render their services on virtual space.
Successful Examples of Iranian Start-ups
In order to become familiar with this sector, hereinafter we would like to report some inspirational examples of investments.
- Snapp
Snapp is an Iranian ride hailing company which renders its services online. The Snapp application automatically connects the users to the nearest driver and shows the driver the user’s location. Afterwards, the nearest ready driver will pick up the users from their location, and Snapp calculates the price beforehand. This price is normally lower than the Taxi Agency Unions prices and can be received either in cash or via online payment or credit card.
- Digikala
Digikala is the name of one of the biggest e-marketplaces in Iran. Cellphones, laptops and computers, digital cameras, office appliances, automobiles, watches, home appliances, instruments, jewelry, toys, clothes and books are some of the items sold on this website. One of the features of this website is the detailed and comprehensive reviews of different types of digital goods which can be a reliable source for purchasers.
- Pintapin
Pintapin is a comprehensive tool for rendering travel services online. Accommodation services are listed in Pintapin and users can book online their desired location. It is also possible to submit the information regarding your destination, duration of stay and number of companions in order to receive suitable suggestions from Pintapin.
- Bamilo
Bamilo is probably the most important Marketplace businesses in Iran. It started its activity in 2014 and is now among the most viewed websites in Iran. Based on the Amazon-model, the online store is considered as the main Iranian middleman between suppliers and consumers.
- Eskano
Eskano is a smart system for searching real estate in Iran which is performed under international standards. With its huge database of transferable real estates divided between several Iranian cities, Eskano facilitates the sale and lease process, also with the possibility of setting up appointments directly through the website.
The author of this post is Mohammad Rahmani.
In a previous post we outlined how a foreign investor may conduct a business in Argentina and, specifically, we analysed the main characteristics of the Limited Liability Companies (Sociedades de Responsabilidad Limitada “SRL”).
In this post we are going to focus the attention on another type of company: the Joint Stock Corporation – Sociedades Anónimas (“SA”).
The main differences between Sociedades de Responsabilidad Limitada and Sociedades Anónimas are the following:
- The transfer of SRL quotas shall be registered in the Registry of Commerce. On the contrary, the transfer of shares shall only be registered in the Shareholders’ Register of the SA.
- Number of partners cannot be more than 50 in the SRL, while in the SA there is only the minimum number of 2.
- Board of Directors of a SA has the obligation of meeting at least every 3 months, while in the SRL the management does not have such obligation.
- In a SRL, the partner who has the majority vote does not need the vote of another partner to approve decisions. On the other hand, one shareholder with the majority vote can manage a SA without the favorable vote of any other shareholder.
Main characteristics of the Argentinian Stock Corporations: las Sociedades Anónimas (“SA”)
Shareholders: A minimum of two shareholders is required, and they may be resident or non-resident in Argentina.
Corporate capital: The minimum capital currently required by law is equal to Argentina Pesos (ARS) 100.000 (approximately USD 6.250), of which only 25% must be paid in at the time of the corporate organization. The balance shall be paid within a maximum term of two years from the incorporation. However, the Public Registry of Commerce may require an initial corporate capital amount higher than ARS 100,000 in case – having regards to the nature and characteristics of the businesses involved by the corporate purpose – the corporate capital is considered overtly inappropriate.
Liability SA: Shareholders liability is limited to the amount of capital invested. The sole limitation to this rule is the “lifting of the corporate veil” doctrine, applicable only when a company has been organized or used for fraudulent purposes, in order to abuse the liability limitation.
Legal Books and Records SA: There are 4 company books and records provided by the law: 1) Shareholders’ Register; 2) Register of attendance at General Meetings; 3) Minutes of General Meetings; and 4) Minutes of Directors’ Meetings.
Administration: The Board of Directors is the body in charge of the company administration. Its members do not need to be shareholders or residents in Argentina. However, the law requires that the Board of Directors meets at least four times a year with the physical presence of the majority of its members. The law also requires that the majority of the Directors are domiciled in Argentina.
If the corporate capital amounts to ARS 10.000.000 (approximately USD 625.000) or more, the minimum number of Directors is three; otherwise, the law does not impose any minimum number of directors.
The President of the Board of Directors has the power of legal representation of the company and, in case of his/her absence, the Vice President may act as the company’s legal representative.
In addition to and notwithstanding the above, the company’s representation may be conferred through powers of attorney issued by the Board of Directors for specific purposes (banking, administrative affairs, judicial, etc.).
Supervision SA: If the SA’s corporate capital is lower than ARS 10.000.000 no Syndic (a kind of internal auditor, with the duty to ensure that the company formally complies with the law) need to be appointed. If the capital is above said amount, the S.A. must organize a supervisory body composed of Syndics.
The SA that does not make public offer of its stock capital may appoint only one principal Syndic and one alternate Syndic. The principal Syndic and the alternate Syndic are elected by the Shareholders. To be elected Syndic it is necessary to be a lawyer or a public accountant domiciled in Argentina. Employees, directors or managers of the company or its parent or subsidiary companies may not be syndics. Shareholders may remove Syndics at their own discretion.
Governing body: The corporate authority governing the SA and adopting resolutions is the Shareholders’ Meeting, competent – among other issues – to approve the Annual Balance Sheet of the company, to appoint and/or remove its Directors and Syndics and to deal with any other item related to the company’s ordinary course of business.
Financial statements, Balance Sheets and Accounts SA: Annual financial statements must be submitted for the consideration of the Stakeholders’ Meeting. Argentine law provides that the Annual financial statements must be filed also with the Public Registry of Commerce.
The author of this post is Tomás García Navarro.
Cyprus is emerging as a new investment fund centre in Europe following the efforts for evolving and upgrading the regulatory and compliance framework which was initiated in the late 1990s. The enactment of the Alternative Investment Funds Law, No. 131(I)/2014 (AIF Law) is the latest development which aimed at the creation of an attractive and competitive environment for further enhancement and development of the alternative funds industry in Cyprus. The AIF Law replaced the previous regime under which Cyprus managed to develop into a regional domicile for investment funds and their managers.
The following possibilities for alternative investment funds (AIFs) were introduced by the AIF Law:
- Umbrella funds with multiple investment compartments/sub-funds which may adopt different investment policies and manage different pools of assets
- Transferability of shares
- Public offerings of AIF’s shares or units
- Listing of securities issued by AIFs
AIFs may be open-ended or closed-ended and may take one of the following legal forms:
- Fixed Capital Company
- Variable Capital Company
- Limited Partnership
- Common Fund (contractual)
The relevant rules applicable to the respective legal form are based on Anglo-Saxon common law principles which are incorporated in Cyprus law (company law, partnerships law and contract law etc.).
AIFs may have a limited or unlimited duration.
Investor Classification
AIFs may be established either to be marketed to retail investors or to professional and/or well informed investors (see below for the exception applicable to AIFs with limited number of persons). Investor classification is to be made on the following basis:
- Professional Investor: For an investor to be considered as professional investor the requirements for professional clients under Markets in Financial Instruments Directive 2004/39/EC (MIFID) must be satisfied. A basic characteristic of professional investors is the fact that they possess the experience, knowledge and expertise to make their own investment decisions and to properly assess the risks they incur.
- Well-Informed Investor: A well-informed investor is not a professional investor within the above meaning but one who:
- confirms in writing the well-informed investor status and awareness of the risks related with the proposed investment; and
- makes an investment of at least €125.000 or has been assessed as having the expertise, experience and knowledge in evaluating the suitability of the investment opportunity in the AIF by a credit institution, investment firm or a management company for Undertakings for the collective Investment in Transferable Securities (UCITS Management Company)
- Retail Investor: A retail investor is an investor who does not fulfil the above requirements so as to be classified as a professional or well-informed investor.
Types of AIFs
The AIF Law allows for the establishment of AIFs to be addressed to an unlimited number of investors as well as for funds addressed to a limited number of persons (maximum 75) who may only be professional and/or well-informed investors.
AIFs to be addressed to an unlimited number of investors must to comply with minimum initial capital requirements i.e. €125.000 if externally managed and €300.000 if self-managed.
AIFs may be subject to investment restrictions depending on the investor type, the category of the assets to be held in their portfolio and the overall investment policy to be adopted. On the other hand, AIFs with limited number of investors are subject to a lighter legal and regulatory framework and are not subject to investment restrictions or investment limits.
Management of AIFs
AIFs may be managed externally by a manager appointed to perform the management of the portfolio of assets and related services. Different entities may undertake this role depending on the type of AIF:
- For AIFs with unlimited number of investors the external manager may be:
- An Alternative Investment Fund Manager (AIFM) established under local law or under the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive
- A UCITS Management Company established under local law or under the Undertakings for the collective Investment in Transferable Securities Directive
- A MIFID Investment Firm established under local law
- An AIFM established in a third country but complying with the relevant provisions of the local legislation
- For AIFs with limited number of investors the external manager may be:
- A MIFID Investment Firm established under local law or the MIFID
- A UCITs Management Company established under local law
- An entity established under local law solely for the purpose of managing a specific AIF with limited number of investors
- An entity established in a third country and licensed to provide asset management services and subject to prudential supervision
In the case of AIFs which are companies, the AIF Law provides the option of self-management whereby the management of the portfolio of assets is performed by the board of directors subject to certain restrictions (cap on value of the assets under management, restrictions on leverage, lock-up periods).
Depositary
The depositary of an AIF may be a credit institution or a MIFID Investment Firm or other entity which is subject to prudential regulation and ongoing supervision and which is eligible to act as depositary under its home state legislation.
The depositary must have its registered office in Cyprus or in another member state of the European Union or in a third country, provided that the Cyprus Securities Exchange Commission has signed with the competent authorities of the third country a Memorandum of Understanding for Cooperation and Exchange of Information.
Under certain circumstances it is possible for small AIFs with limited number of persons not to appoint a depositary.
Utilisation of the AIFs
AIFs may be utilised for investments in a wide range of asset classes. Such funds have been established for investments in debt and equity securities as well as real estate and private equity. In a structure with multiple investment compartments/sub-funds, different compartments/sub-funds may invest in diverse asset classes.
Key benefits
- Cost-efficient and simple set-up process with fees being significantly lower than in the more mature fund centres e.g. Ireland and Luxembourg
- A single and accessible regulator for the alternative funds and their managers
- Flexibility as to the asset classes that may be included in the AIF portfolio
- Transparency, reporting and risk management aiming at investor protection
- Regulated environment in line with the European Union regulatory framework for Alternative Investment Fund Managers, MIFID Investment Firms and UCITSs
- Passporting of the marketing of funds in the European Union where the manager is an AIFM
- Redomiciliation in and out of Cyprus is possible
Taxation
Cyprus’ growth in this sector has been driven by the country’s tax treaty network, originally rendering it a jurisdiction for launching investments funds with investments primarily into Russia, the former Soviet republics and Eastern Europe but recently also in Asian countries.
Main aspects of tax treatment in Cyprus:
- Subject to 12.5% flat corporation tax
- Exemption from tax on dividends received by the AIF
- Exemption from tax on profits from sale of securities or other instruments (except where the securities are in companies owning immovable property in Cyprus)
- No subscription tax on assets of funds
- Exemption on capital gains tax from the sale of immovable property located outside Cyprus
- No capital gains tax on disposal of shares/units by the holders
- Benefiting from an extensive network of more than 50 double tax treaties offering interesting tax planning opportunities
In a rapidly changing funds industry, the options and opportunities available for the setting up and operation of alternative investment funds under the Cyprus regulatory regime are worth exploring by fund managers, investors and their advisors.
Brasile 
Iran 
Turchia – Nuovo regolamento sull’uso obbligatorio della lira turca
- Distribuzione
- Investimenti
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Turchia
Spagna 
Italia 
Foreign investments in Argentina – Sociedades Anónimas (“SA”)
- Diritto societario
- Investimenti
-
Argentina
Cipro Scrivi a Martin
RCEP – Il più grande accordo di libero scambio
19 Novembre 2020
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Singapore -
Vietnam
- Distribuzione
- Investimenti
Summary
The Loi visant principalement à améliorer la transparence des entreprises came into force in Québec on March 31, 2023, imposing new obligations on businesses in the province. The law requires businesses to disclose information about their ultimate beneficial owners (UBOs) to the Registraire des entreprises. UBOs are individuals who possess voting rights, fair market value of shares, or de facto control over the business. Certain entities are exempt from disclosing their UBOs. The information disclosed will be accessible to the public, except for the date of birth and, in some cases, the home address.
On March 31, 2023, the Loi visant principalement à améliorer la transparence des entreprises (Act mainly to improve the transparency of enterprises) came into force in Québec, imposing new obligations for businesses in the province.
The new law modifies the Loi sur la publicité légale des entreprises (Act respecting the legal publicity of entreprises) and seeks to increase corporate transparency, namely by requiring businesses to provide to the Registraire des entreprises (the “REQ”) information about their bénéficiaires ultimes, i.e. ultimate beneficial owners (“UBO”).
An UBO is, namely, any individual who:
- possesses at least 25% of voting rights;
- possesses at least 25% of the fair market value of all shares; or
- has enough influence to exercise de facto control of the business.
All UBOs of a business must be disclosed, although some entities such as non-profit organizations, legal persons established in public interest, public corporations, financial institutions and trust companies are not required to disclose their UBOs. For every UBO, the following information is required to be communicated to the REQ:
- names and aliases;
- home address (and optionally, business address);
- date of birth;
- type of control exercised or percentage of shares, interests, or units held;
- date at which he/she became an UBO and date at which he/she ceased to be one.
Most of this information will be accessible to the public, with the exceptions of the date of birth and, in cases where a business address is provided, the home address. The names and home addresses of minors are also hidden from public access.
By providing access to shareholder information, the Province of Québec was already the only Canadian corporate jurisdiction that required public disclosure of the names and domiciles of the three principal shareholders. The province again takes the lead by forcing disclosure of corporations’ UBOs. For now, in the rest of Canada, the identity of UBOs for privately held companies is not a matter of public record.
Entities doing business in Québec should ensure to conduct a proper examination of their organizational structure, so as to correctly and fully disclose the information required by the new transparency rules. Any failure to do so can lead to immediate revocation of the business’ registration under the REQ, as well as to fines ranging from CAD 1,000 to CAD 40,000.
The new rules only require the businesses themselves to take the necessary measures to confirm the identities of their UBOs. Professional advisers do not have any due diligence obligations in this regard.
Sotto la presidenza vietnamita dell’Associazione delle nazioni del Sud-est asiatico (ASEAN), dopo otto anni di negoziati i dieci Stati membri dell’ASEAN (Brunei, Cambogia, Filippine, Indonesia, Laos, Malesia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailandia, Vietnam) il 15 novembre 2020 hanno firmato un clamoroso accordo di libero scambio (FTA) con Cina, Corea del Sud, Giappone, Australia e Nuova Zelanda, denominato Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).
La comunità economica dell’ASEAN è un’area di libero scambio avviata nel 2015 tra i suddetti dieci membri dell’omonima associazione, che comprende un PIL aggregato di 2,6 trilioni di dollari e oltre 622 milioni di persone. L’ASEAN è il principale partner commerciale della Cina, con l’Unione Europea scivolata al secondo posto.
A differenza dell’Eurozona e dell’Unione Europea, l’ASEAN non ha una moneta unica, né istituzioni comuni, come la Commissione Europea, il Parlamento e il Consiglio. Analogamente a quanto accade nell’UE, tuttavia, un singolo membro detiene una presidenza a rotazione.
Singoli Paesi ASEAN, come Vietnam e Singapore, hanno recentemente stipulato accordi di libero scambio con l’Unione Europea, mentre l’intero blocco ASEAN aveva e ha tuttora in essere i cosiddetti accordi “più uno” con altri Paesi dell’area, ovvero la Repubblica Popolare Cinese, Hong Kong, la Repubblica di Corea,, il Giappone, l’India e l’Australia e la Nuova Zelanda insieme.
Ad eccezione dell’India, tutti gli altri Paesi con accordi “più uno” con l’ASEAN fanno ora parte dell’RCEP, che supererà progressivamente i singoli FTA attraverso l’armonizzazione delle regole, soprattutto quelle relative all’origine dei prodotti.
I negoziati RCEP sono accelerati con la decisione degli Stati Uniti d’America di ritirarsi dal Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement (TPP) con l’elezione del presidente Trump nel 2016 (anche se vale la pena di ricordare che anche gran parte del partito democratico degli Stati Uniti si era ai tempi opposta al TPP). Il TPP sarebbe stato quindi il più grande accordo di libero scambio di sempre e, come suggerisce il nome, avrebbe messo insieme dodici nazioni affacciate sull’Oceano Pacifico, ossia Australia, Brunei, Canada, Cile, Giappone, Malesia, Messico, Nuova Zelanda, Perù, Singapore, Vietnam e appunto Stati Uniti. Con l’esclusione di questi ultimi, gli altri undici hanno comunque firmato un accordo simile, denominato Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). Il CPTPP è stato tuttavia ratificato solo da sette dei suoi firmatari e chiaramente non ne fa parte la più grande economia e partner più significativo di tutti. Allo stesso tempo, sia l’abortito TPP, sia il CPTPP escludono enfaticamente la Cina.
Il peso del RCEP è quindi evidentemente maggiore, in quanto nei Paesi firmatari, che rappresentano circa il 30% del PIL mondiale, vivono 2,1 miliardi di persone. E la porta per l’India con i suoi 1,4 miliardi di persone e 2,6 trilioni di dollari di PIL rimane aperta, hanno affermato gli altri membri.
Come la maggior parte degli accordi di libero scambio, l’obiettivo dell’RCEP è abbassare le tariffe, facilitare gli scambi di beni e servizi e promuovere gli investimenti. L’accordo affronta brevemente la tutela dei diritti di proprietà intellettuale, ma non fa menzione della tutela dell’ambiente e dei diritti dei lavoratori. I suoi firmatari comprendono economie molto avanzate, come quella di Singapore, e piuttosto povere, come quella della Cambogia.
Il significato dell’RCEP in questo momento è probabilmente più simbolico che tangibile. Anche se si stima che circa il 90% delle tariffe sarà abolito, ciò avverrà solo in un periodo di venti anni dall’entrata in vigore, cosa che accadrà solo dopo la ratifica. Inoltre, il settore dei servizi e soprattutto quello agricolo non rappresentano il fulcro dell’accordo e pertanto saranno ancora soggetti a barriere, regole e restrizioni nazionali. Ciononostante, si stima che, anche in questi tempi di pandemia, l’RCEP contribuirà annualmente al PIL mondiale per circa 40 miliardi di dollari in più rispetto al CPTPP (186 miliardi di dollari contro 147 miliardi di dollari) per dieci anni consecutivi.
Il suo impatto immediato è geopolitico. Sebbene i firmatari non siano affatto alleati di ferro (si pensi alle controversie territoriali sul Mar Cinese Meridionale, per esempio), il messaggio è chiaro:
- La maggior parte di questa parte del mondo ha affrontato la pandemia di Covid-19 molto bene, ma non può permettersi di aprire le sue frontiere a europei e americani in tempi brevi, per timore che il virus si diffonda di nuovo. Deve quindi cercare di appianare le tensioni interne, se vuole vedere nelle sue economie alcuni segnali positivi dati dal commercio privato, oltre alla spesa pubblica in deficit (non sempre “buona”). La maggior parte di questi Paesi fa molto affidamento sui talenti, sui turisti, sui beni, sui servizi e persino sul supporto strategico e militare dell’Occidente, ma è realista sul fatto che, a meno che il tanto pubblicizzato vaccino non funzioni molto bene e molto presto, l’Occidente lotterà con questo coronavirus per lunghi mesi, se non anni.
- Il multilateralismo è fondamentale e l’isolazionismo è pericoloso. Il blocco ASEAN e il duo Australia-Nuova Zelanda lavorano esattamente in questa direzione pacifica e favorevole agli affari.
Il sito web ufficiale dell’ASEAN (https://asean.org/?static_post=rcep-regional-comprehensive-economic-partnership) è molto chiaro al riguardo e afferma, infatti, che:
L’RCEP fornirà un quadro volto ad abbassare le barriere commerciali e garantire un migliore accesso al mercato di beni e servizi per le imprese della regione, attraverso:
- Il riconoscimento della centralità dell’ASEAN nell’architettura economica regionale e degli interessi dei partner dell’ASEAN nel potenziamento dell’integrazione economica e nel rafforzamento della cooperazione economica tra i Paesi partecipanti agli FTA;
- La facilitazione del commercio e degl’investimenti e maggiore trasparenza nelle relazioni commerciali e di investimento tra i Paesi partecipanti, nonché maggiore coinvolgimento delle PMI nelle catene di valore globali e regionali; e
- L’ampliamento degli impegni economici dell’ASEAN con i suoi partner.
L’RCEP riconosce l’importanza dell’inclusività, in particolare per consentire alle PMI di sfruttare l’accordo e far fronte alle sfide derivanti dalla globalizzazione e dalla liberalizzazione del commercio. Le PMI (comprese le microimprese) costituiscono più del 90% delle imprese dei firmatari dell’RCEP e sono importanti per lo sviluppo endogeno dell’economia di ogni Paese. Allo stesso tempo, l’RCEP è volto a fornire politiche economiche regionali eque a vantaggio sia dell’ASEAN, sia dei suoi partner.
Tuttavia, il momento è favorevole anche per le imprese dell’UE. Come ricordato, l’UE ha in essere accordi di libero scambio con Singapore, Corea del Sud, Vietnam, un accordo di partenariato economico con il Giappone e sta negoziando separatamente sia con l’Australia, sia con la Nuova Zelanda.
In generale, tutti questi accordi creano regole comuni per tutti gli attori coinvolti, rendendo così più semplice per le aziende commerciare in diversi territori. Con le avvertenze già rapidamente enucleate sull’entrata in vigore e sulle regole di origine, i Paesi che hanno firmato un accordo di libero scambio con l’UE e l’RCEP, in particolare Singapore, un importante hub di lingua inglese, che si colloca al primo posto in Asia orientale nell’indice dello Stato di diritto (terzo nella regione dopo Nuova Zelanda e Australia e dodicesimo in tutto il mondo: https://worldjusticeproject.org/sites/default/files/documents/Singapore%20-%202020%20WJP%20Rule%20of%20Law%20Index%20Country%20Press%20Release.pdf), potrebbero collegare entrambe le regioni e facilitare il commercio globale anche in questo difficile periodo storico.
Il tasso di cambio è da sempre questione centrale nell’economia iraniana, basata principalmente sul settore del petrolio. A tal proposito, negli ultimi decenni le autorità governative hanno adottato diversi regolamenti aventi tutti lo scopo di gestire e calmierare l’impatto delle fluttuazioni del tasso di cambio sull’economia reale iraniana.
La situazione del mercato monetario, però, nonostante la conclusione dell’accordo sul nucleare iraniano (PACG – Piano d’azione congiunto globale) e la revoca delle sanzioni economiche contro l’Iran, non è migliorata. Negli ultimi mesi, infatti, il mercato monetario iraniano ha visto crescere improvvisamente la domanda di valute straniere come il Dollaro americano (“USD”) e l’Euro. Tale sviluppo caotico, conosciuto anche come “foreign currency rate jump crisis”, ha portato all’applicazione di una nuova norma da parte delle autorità iraniane al fine di uniformare il tasso di cambio per le valute.
Una Nuova Norma
Alla luce di quanto appena visto, l’11 aprile 2018 il Consiglio dei Ministri ha adottato una legge mirata a regolare e organizzare il mercato valutario in Iran. La novità più importante è il paragrafo 5, il quale stabilisce un tasso fisso di cambio – il “Nerkh Mobadelee” – pari a 42,000 IRR per dollaro.
Oltre a questo paragrafo, bisogna tenere in considerazione altre disposizioni normative che hanno riguardato questo nuovo regime monetario.
Importazione ed Esportazione di Beni e Servizi
Secondo il par. 1 della legge appena vista, qualsiasi ordine per l’importazione di beni in Iran – anche attraverso Free Trade Zones – deve essere soggetta a registrazione. La comunicazione n. 9 rilasciata dalla Banca Centrale dell’Iran (“CBI”) il 14 aprile 2018 ha precisato che questa registrazione è un prerequisito per la fornitura di qualsiasi valuta straniera da utilizzare per portare a termine l’acquisto di beni e servizi dall’estero.
La valuta richiesta per gli ordini registrati sarà emessa attraverso il sistema bancario, in conformità ai regolamenti predisposti dalla CBI. Per l’attuazione di questo processo è stata sviluppata una piattaforma unificata per il cambio valuta, chiamata “NIMA”, all’interno della quale interagiscono i quattro operatori principali: importatori di beni e servizi in qualità di acquirenti di valuta, esportatori di beni e servizi in qualità di fornitori di valuta, banche e uffici di cambio in qualità d’intermediari che dirigono la valuta dai fornitori ai richiedenti e infine l’autorità di settore che determina il tasso di cambio e le valute di preferenza. In altre parole, importatori ed esportatori possono comprare o vendere valuta unicamente attraverso tale piattaforma NIMA.
In aggiunta, quando la valuta in questione è fornita dalla CBI sulla base del Nerkh Mobadelee (ovvero, il tasso di cambio fissato dal governo) ma la fattura non è ancora stata emessa, i documenti di spedizione devono essere presentati alla banca entro massimo sei mesi dall’emissione della moneta. Nel caso in cui i documenti di spedizione siano presentati tardivamente, la loro ammissione resta soggetta al parere del CBI e al pagamento della differenza tra il tasso di cambio della valuta al momento dell’emissione del conto e quello alla data di comunicazione dei documenti di spedizione alla banca (ove il tasso sia aumentato nel frattempo).
Valuta Straniera per i Viaggi all’Estero
La Comunicazione n. 2 della CBI chiarisce che la valuta straniera per i viaggi all’estero sarà erogata ai passeggeri alle frontiere aeroportuali solo una volta all’anno per un importo ma di Euro 1,000 (o l’equivalente in altra valuta). L’importo di valute straniere fornite ai passeggeri diretti in paesi confinanti e paesi del Common-Wealth, eccetto l’Iraq, è di 500 Euro (o l’equivalente in altra valuta). Tale valuta straniera può essere erogata solamente a passeggeri muniti di passaporto iraniano.
I passeggeri stranieri possono fare ingresso in Iran con un massimo di Euro 10,000 (o equivalente in altra valuta straniera); in caso di somma superiore, saranno tenuti a effettuare una dichiarazione in linea con le richieste della CBI.
Assegnazione di valuta straniera nei contratti di finanziamento
La Comunicazione n. 4 del 12 aprile 2018 della CBI regolamenta i contratti di finanziamento a seguito del nuovo assetto monetario, disponendo che tutti i pagamenti relativi a contratti di finanziamento (inclusi i pagamenti anticipati, il pagamento dei costi, ecc.) siano conformi al nuovo tasso di 42.000,00 IRR per ogni USD.
In aggiunta, per quanto riguarda i progetti che prevedono un’importazione di valuta straniera nel paese, questi dovranno prevedere altresì una fornitura rilevante di valuta straniera per far fronte ai pagamenti previsti.
Il Cambio della Valuta
La nuova normativa sopra esposta, al paragrafo 13, prevede inoltre alcune restrizioni sulle attività condotte dai cambia-valuta. In tale ambito, qualsiasi operazione di cambio e commercio della valuta straniera non conforme alle condizioni fornite dalla CBI verrà qualificata come contrabbando e perseguita ai sensi della legge.
Conclusione
Alla luce di tutto quanto appena visto, il pagamento di tutte le transazioni di import-export riguardanti l’Iran, dovrà essere effettuato attraverso un canale di controllo governativo, guidato dalla Banca Centrale dell’Iran. L’assegnazione della valuta deve essere soggetta a una ratifica di registrazione d’ordine e accettazione da parte della CBI.
Qualsiasi azienda che intenda operare in Iran dovrà uniformarsi a questa regolamentazione, almeno fino alla prossima modifica legislativa sul tema.
Il presidente Erdogan ha emanato un decreto presidenziale che impone l’uso obbligatorio della Lira Turca negli accordi conclusi tra soggetti residenti in Turchia. Il decreto (d’ora innanzi: Decreto), che modifica il decreto sulla protezione del valore della lira turca, è stato pubblicato sulla Gazzetta Ufficiale ed è entrato in vigore il 13 settembre 2018.
Il Decreto impone l’uso della Lira Turca per l’acquisto e la vendita di tutti i tipi di beni, merci, servizi e immobili. Tutti i contratti di affitto di veicoli, immobili e qualunque altro tipo di beni devono essere effettuati utilizzando le Lire Turche. Il Decreto stabilisce inoltre che i contratti non possono fare riferimento al tasso di cambio della Lira Turca con una valuta straniera.
Andiamo a vedere punto per punto le modifiche introdotte dal regolamento.
Impossibilità di utilizzare le valute straniere nei contratti nazionali
Il Decreto, come già anticipato, prevede che tutti i pagamenti relativi a contratti tra soggetti residenti in Turchia devono essere obbligatoriamente effettuati in Lire Turche, sia che riguardino persone giuridiche, sia che riguardino persone fisiche.
Inoltre, anche tutti i contratti aventi ad oggetto immobili dovranno essere effettuate in Lire Turche, senza alcuna possibilità di far riferimento a valute estere.
Tutti i contratti devono essere modificati entro 30 giorni
Il Decreto prevede, inoltre, che tutti i contratti tra soggetti residenti in Turchia stipulati prima del 13 settembre 2018 devono essere modificati e i pagamenti devono essere convertiti in Lire Turche entro 30 giorni dalla data di pubblicazione del Decreto (13 settembre 2018): ciò significa che tutti i contratti tra soggetti residenti, basati su valute straniere devono essere modificati entro il 14 ottobre 2018, senza – come già visto – poter vincolare gli importi contrattuali al tasso di cambio con qualsivoglia valuta estera.
Le parti, quindi, sono libere di concordare qualsiasi tasso di cambio nel momento in cui modificano il contratto (ossia entro il 14 ottobre), ma non possono vincolare il contenuto del contratto alle oscillazioni future.
Importazione ed esportazione di beni e servizi
Il nuovo Decreto non ha alcun impatto sui contratti di import-export, a patto che una delle parti del contratto non sia residente in Turchia. Tuttavia si deve notare che il Decreto può avere un impatto sulle controllate turche di società multinazionali che commerciano in valuta straniera.
Non vi è alcuna limitazione nel portare valuta estera nel paese.
Sanzioni
La nuova politica monetaria non prevede alcuna sanzione penale o amministrativa. È probabile che queste vengano adottate dalle nuove regolamentazioni, che dovranno implementare alcuni aspetti pratici per la completa applicazione del Decreto. È opportuno però sottolineare che, in caso di mancata conversione il Lire Turche di un contratto stipulato in valuta straniera, sarà facile per una delle due parti richiedere al Tribunale la modifica del contratto.
Conclusioni
Questo Decreto è uno dei provvedimenti presi dal governo turco per sostenere la Lira Turca, in grande difficoltà. Il crollo del valore della Lira Turca, infatti, è al centro dei provvedimenti governativi degli ultimi 6 mesi, interamente volti a cercare di arginarne il calo del valore.
Fino al 1983 in Turchia erano in vigore politiche simili, sempre allo scopo di proteggere la moneta locale, che poi sono state eliminate dopo le elezioni del 1983 e la nuova visione liberale. Si trattava, però, di un’epoca ed un’economia diversa rispetto a oggi.
Non è ancora chiaro se questo Decreto possa o meno portare ad un miglioramento, ma quello che è sicuro è che gli investitori stranieri (o locali finanziati da istituzioni straniere) dovranno modificare i loro contratti in vigore stipulati in valute estere, convertendoli in Lire Turche.
Convertible notes, SAFE Agreements, participative financial instruments: the growing interest in start-up investing has led to a progressive differentiation both in investment strategies and, as a consequence, in legal/contractual instruments so to best suit the investors’ needs.
The introduction of these tools, specific to foreign ecosystems such as the Silicon Valley, and the difficulties in sourcing sufficient capitals to back the development of start-up companies, in particular with regard to the early/seed stage, has encouraged several players to opt for instruments alternative to equity investment, either developed “nationally” or under common law systems.
This mind-set has many positive side effects since it opened up the capital raising landscape that now includes venture capital funds, business angels networks, family offices and even club deals composed of small investors willing to buy into start-ups (mostly over the incubation/acceleration stage) with an injection of capital for a relatively small amount of shares.
In Italy, this trend towards non-equity or demi-equity instruments had two major results: it contributed to dust off legal instruments first introduced by the latest comprehensive reform of the Italian company law in 2004 (e.g. participative financial instruments – in Italian: Strumenti Finanziari di Partecipazione or SFP – art. 2346, par. 6 of the Italian Civil Code); and it fostered the creation of new contractual models plainly inspired by well-known instruments used in the Silicon Valley. That is the case of Convertible Notes and SAFE Agreements (Simple Agreement for Future Equity).
These instruments, together with the SFPs, have a trait in common: they all require a cash investment which is meant to be converted to equity at a specific milestone or on a pre-set date. On the other hand, none of them entails the possibility for an investor to hold a participation as a shareholder (at least not straightaway). Investors become stakeholders instead and they may hold as many administrative/patrimonial rights as they manage to negotiate with the company or with the founders themselves as well as depending on the specific contractual instrument they selected. It is important to point out that profits distribution rights are not included among those subject to negotiation since innovative start-ups (namely early-stage companies that meet certain criteria set by the law: i.e. high level technology of the company’s scope, R&D expenditure or number of graduates employed, etc.) are prevented from distributing profits for the first five years according the pertaining Italian regulation (see art. 25, par. 2 of the D.L. 179/2012).
Convertible Note and SFP
Starting off with convertible notes: these instruments are extremely flexible and mainly used by club deals and family offices. They are structured as a hybrid between convertible obligations and traditional loans. Investors in facts lend money to a start-up on a specific interest rate and according to a contract where the parties have previously set out terms and conditions that would preside over their relationship. The investment is classified as a liability of the company to third parties and, more specifically, as a long term liability.
The parties set two different dates, one for the conversion of the credit to equity and another one for the possible payback (in case the conversion has not been exercised). Sometimes the parties decide to leave the payback aside and set directly the date of the conversion to equity thus transforming the instrument from a demi-loan to an option on a prospective capital increase, where the money invested in the company would be considered as the price of the option; or even an obligation that can be converted to shares, an hypothesis admitted by eminent scholars not only for corporations, but also for limited liability companies.
The conversion date is usually set before the reimbursements, for the latter is meant as the last resort in the event the capital increase has not been approved by the company and provided that the parties had previously agreed upon such possibility. Furthermore, the reimbursement might be considered as a consequence of certain events, in particular when there is a payback request for cause or when a party violates any of the representations and warranties set out in the contract. In order to avoid unpleasant surprises, it is “customary” to provide for a future capital increase specifically dedicated to the investor – as well as an obligation for the investor to convert his loan – directly in the contract. The parties are free to determine whether the conversion should take place on a certain date or subject to the company meeting specific milestones such as: turnover goals, the achievement of specific results both economically and with reference to the development of its tangible/intangible technological assets (for instance, the development of software or the patenting of an invention). The actual conversion may take place at once or in instalments through a resolution of the shareholders to schedule the capital increase in two or more tranches. The convertible note must provide for a price per share for the conversion based on the so-called pre-money valuation; it is quite usual to set also a conversion discount, that is a price per share lower than the per share price paid by other investors in that round.
SAFE Agreement
The SAFE Agreement – developed and used by the world-renowned California-based incubator “Y Combinator” – is neither a debt instrument, unlike convertible notes, nor an equity one since it does not give its holder the right to profit sharing or the right to vote as a shareholder. It is rather a financial instrument that incorporates a prospective right to buy out preferred shares.
Although SAFE Agreements do not have an Italian counterpart, SFPs may look alike when they are “designed” as semi-equity participative instrument (without payback) and used to collect capitals to be allocated in a specific equity reserve, which should be used only to cover the company’s operating losses and be considered otherwise unavailable. However, the extent of this unavailability is still a matter of debate among scholars and the possibility for the parties to a SFP agreement to determine that the reserve at issue might only be used upon depletion of the others (legal reserve fund included) is not undisputed as well. In one of the latest ruling on the matter, the judge has indeed opted for the availability of the reserve created upon issuance of the SFPs on account of its statutory nature, stating that it can therefore be depleted before legal reserve fund and equity (Court of Naples, 25/2/2016). This is basically the main reason why SAFE agreements cannot be implemented tout court in Italy.
In any case, the Italian Civil Code allows the possibility to design the SFPs so as to meet specific requirements since they are essentially “empty boxes” that can be filled by the parties based on the needs of either the issuing start-up company and/or the investors willing to fund it. In fact, the law only sets two guidelines: i) it excludes that the SFP could grant its holder the right to vote as a shareholder; ii) it establishes that these instruments can be endowed with patrimonial or even administrative rights. The possibility for a company to issue SFPs must be specified in the articles of association/bylaws, which refers to a future extraordinary meeting of the shareholders for the adoption of the pertaining regulation, which will also set out the functioning rules of the special assembly dedicated to the holders of SFPs.
Turning to the SAFE Agreement, the American model sets a conversion price that cannot exceed a certain cap, according to which the company assigns shares on a capital increase (i.e. SAFE preferred) with privileged rights and with restrictions closely similar to those typical of standard “preferred shares”. Furthermore, it also sets a discounted conversation price which, in the US experience, is in the range of 15-20%, while there no provision as to a future deadline for paying the investment back.
Nothing prohibits to adapt the regulation of the SFPs to the best practice resulted from the implementation of the SAFE Agreement in the US. That is the case of the “acceleration” clauses that allow the investor to convert its investment before the original date set out in the agreement in case of equity-financing/liquidity events, namely the acquisition of the start-up or a capital increase that brings new investors in. This type of clauses is also often used in convertible notes. Some clauses, on the contrary, cannot be transferred into a SFP. That is the case of the clauses that regard the payback in relation to dissolution events such as: (i) the voluntary suspension of the business activity of the company; (ii) the transfer of the company’s assets to benefit the creditors or (iii) the company’s winding-up process both voluntary and not. According to Italian law, the winding-up due to a total loss of equity implies the possibility to use the reserve destined to SFPs with the consequent loss of the money invested by the SFP holders. Hence the common practice – still debated among scholars – that sees the possibility to use the reserves created upon issuance of the SFPs subordinated to the complete depletion of the other reserves, legal reserve fund included.
Eventually, these practices have taken hold over the last few years since they are meant to provide the investors with more and more flexibility when dealing with financial/investment instruments as those described above. They represent in fact an opportunity for both start-ups, that can obtain capital on the short period, and investors, who can grade their entrepreneurial risk allocating their investment as a debt or not – depending on the chosen instruments – with a view to a conversion to equity that will eventually depend on several factors, not least the company’s business metrics and economical standing.
In conclusion, the dynamism of this sector and the recent intervention of the Italian legislator show that there is plenty of room for growth in the Italian start-up ecosystem.
The author of this post is Milena Prisco.
In this post we will briefly outline some legal aspects related to e-commerce in Iran, starting from the definition of the average Iranian user and main characteristics and advantages of e-commerce in the Islamic Republic, which is attracting several foreign investors.
We will then analyze the requirements for the issuance of online business licenses in Iran, which is mandatory in order to open an e-shop. Finally we will take a look at some successful examples of online business in Iran.
The average Iranian user
Some statistics regarding Iranian users active in the virtual space are useful for understanding the size of the Iranian market, and why it is attracting several investors.
According to the “Internet Data and Statistics”, Iran is the thirteenth country for number of internet users, as 57 million of Iranian (on 83 million of Iran’s population) have access to internet (approximately the 68% of the population), but Government sources believe these numbers are underestimated.
What matters for the purpose of this analysis, however, is that approximatively the 58% of the internet users search on the Internet is about information on goods and services and that – until the end of Azar 1394 (December 2015) – the average internet users are male (58%) and young (47% between 20 and 29 years old).
In addition, the 42% of the Iranian internet users are involved in electronic commerce and the 13% use the e-banking services.
Online Business Licenses in Iran
Whether carried out in the traditional way or electronically, all the businesses need a business-license to operate on the Iranian market. The most important law governing is the Union System Act 1971, amended in 1980, 2003 and in 2013, which provides that the business license is issued by the competent union or legal authority.
E-commerce is no exception, therefore all those who intend to sell goods or provide services using the virtual space must acquire a business license.
On February 19th, 2017 the Iranian Government issued an Executive Regulation in regard to the Issuance of License and Supervision on Businesses in Virtual Space and Network Marketing, dividing the activities in virtual space into two categories:
- Virtual Business;
- Network Marketing.
According to Paragraph 1 in Article 1, Virtual Business is a business established by any natural or legal person in order to provide products (goods or services) directly or indirectly on a wholesale or retail basis, to wholesalers, retailers and consumers through telecommunication means such as websites and digital software (applications).
According to Paragraph 2 of Article 1, Network Marketing is a method for selling products based on which the Network Marketing company uses its website to organize the sellers in order to sell their products directly to consumers in a place far from the regular business location. Through this method, each seller can introduce another marketer as it subset and create a multi-product sales group in order to increase sales.
The competent authority for issuance of licenses in this regard is the National Union. Therefore, any person who intends to acquire a license in order to have its activities carried out online, must apply on the website of Center for Development of Electronic Commerce (an organ of the Ministry of Industry, Mine and Commerce, hereinafter: “CDEC” – www.enamad.ir) in order to acquire the Reliance Symbol, which is a symbol necessary to certify the identity and competence of online activities.
Requirements for the Online Business License
Article 3 of the Executive Regulation on Issuance of License and Supervision on Businesses in Virtual Space and Network Marketing, which governs the Issuance of Online Business Licenses in Iran, provides that business licenses shall be issued according to the following procedure:
- Establishment of the virtual business conforming to the checklists provided by the CDEC.
- Registration of application in E-Namad website (then the CDEC automatically submits the application to the unions’ website).
- Upload of the required documents, which we will list below.
- Issuance and submission of the license (after verifying the uploaded documents and the original copies thereof) to the applicant within 15 days and submission of the license information to E-Namad website.
- Grant of Electronic Reliance Symbol concurrent with issuance of the license.
Furthermore, the said Regulation specifies the required documents for issuance of business license, as follows:
- Office or legal domicile address of the applicant;
- Negative criminal record from the Police;
- Certificate of the relevant Tax Organization regarding tax compliance;
- Certificate for attendance in educational courses of commerce and business;
- Confirmation of specialized features regarding virtual business issued by the CDED;
- Photocopy of ID-card/Company-Registration number, plus passport/work-permit for foreigners;
- Photocopy of Military Service Termination Card or Permanent or Medical Exemption Card for men under 50 or a Student Certificate.
In addition to those, the Regulation provides some other documents for particular sectors, so it is advisable to contact an Iranian expert in the matter to verify the compliance with all applicable regulations. For instance, the Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization of Iran has set out some specific criteria for travel and tourism activities in the virtual space, so travel agency services, accommodation centers, private entities and other tourism services must follow a special procedure to render their services on virtual space.
Successful Examples of Iranian Start-ups
In order to become familiar with this sector, hereinafter we would like to report some inspirational examples of investments.
- Snapp
Snapp is an Iranian ride hailing company which renders its services online. The Snapp application automatically connects the users to the nearest driver and shows the driver the user’s location. Afterwards, the nearest ready driver will pick up the users from their location, and Snapp calculates the price beforehand. This price is normally lower than the Taxi Agency Unions prices and can be received either in cash or via online payment or credit card.
- Digikala
Digikala is the name of one of the biggest e-marketplaces in Iran. Cellphones, laptops and computers, digital cameras, office appliances, automobiles, watches, home appliances, instruments, jewelry, toys, clothes and books are some of the items sold on this website. One of the features of this website is the detailed and comprehensive reviews of different types of digital goods which can be a reliable source for purchasers.
- Pintapin
Pintapin is a comprehensive tool for rendering travel services online. Accommodation services are listed in Pintapin and users can book online their desired location. It is also possible to submit the information regarding your destination, duration of stay and number of companions in order to receive suitable suggestions from Pintapin.
- Bamilo
Bamilo is probably the most important Marketplace businesses in Iran. It started its activity in 2014 and is now among the most viewed websites in Iran. Based on the Amazon-model, the online store is considered as the main Iranian middleman between suppliers and consumers.
- Eskano
Eskano is a smart system for searching real estate in Iran which is performed under international standards. With its huge database of transferable real estates divided between several Iranian cities, Eskano facilitates the sale and lease process, also with the possibility of setting up appointments directly through the website.
The author of this post is Mohammad Rahmani.
In a previous post we outlined how a foreign investor may conduct a business in Argentina and, specifically, we analysed the main characteristics of the Limited Liability Companies (Sociedades de Responsabilidad Limitada “SRL”).
In this post we are going to focus the attention on another type of company: the Joint Stock Corporation – Sociedades Anónimas (“SA”).
The main differences between Sociedades de Responsabilidad Limitada and Sociedades Anónimas are the following:
- The transfer of SRL quotas shall be registered in the Registry of Commerce. On the contrary, the transfer of shares shall only be registered in the Shareholders’ Register of the SA.
- Number of partners cannot be more than 50 in the SRL, while in the SA there is only the minimum number of 2.
- Board of Directors of a SA has the obligation of meeting at least every 3 months, while in the SRL the management does not have such obligation.
- In a SRL, the partner who has the majority vote does not need the vote of another partner to approve decisions. On the other hand, one shareholder with the majority vote can manage a SA without the favorable vote of any other shareholder.
Main characteristics of the Argentinian Stock Corporations: las Sociedades Anónimas (“SA”)
Shareholders: A minimum of two shareholders is required, and they may be resident or non-resident in Argentina.
Corporate capital: The minimum capital currently required by law is equal to Argentina Pesos (ARS) 100.000 (approximately USD 6.250), of which only 25% must be paid in at the time of the corporate organization. The balance shall be paid within a maximum term of two years from the incorporation. However, the Public Registry of Commerce may require an initial corporate capital amount higher than ARS 100,000 in case – having regards to the nature and characteristics of the businesses involved by the corporate purpose – the corporate capital is considered overtly inappropriate.
Liability SA: Shareholders liability is limited to the amount of capital invested. The sole limitation to this rule is the “lifting of the corporate veil” doctrine, applicable only when a company has been organized or used for fraudulent purposes, in order to abuse the liability limitation.
Legal Books and Records SA: There are 4 company books and records provided by the law: 1) Shareholders’ Register; 2) Register of attendance at General Meetings; 3) Minutes of General Meetings; and 4) Minutes of Directors’ Meetings.
Administration: The Board of Directors is the body in charge of the company administration. Its members do not need to be shareholders or residents in Argentina. However, the law requires that the Board of Directors meets at least four times a year with the physical presence of the majority of its members. The law also requires that the majority of the Directors are domiciled in Argentina.
If the corporate capital amounts to ARS 10.000.000 (approximately USD 625.000) or more, the minimum number of Directors is three; otherwise, the law does not impose any minimum number of directors.
The President of the Board of Directors has the power of legal representation of the company and, in case of his/her absence, the Vice President may act as the company’s legal representative.
In addition to and notwithstanding the above, the company’s representation may be conferred through powers of attorney issued by the Board of Directors for specific purposes (banking, administrative affairs, judicial, etc.).
Supervision SA: If the SA’s corporate capital is lower than ARS 10.000.000 no Syndic (a kind of internal auditor, with the duty to ensure that the company formally complies with the law) need to be appointed. If the capital is above said amount, the S.A. must organize a supervisory body composed of Syndics.
The SA that does not make public offer of its stock capital may appoint only one principal Syndic and one alternate Syndic. The principal Syndic and the alternate Syndic are elected by the Shareholders. To be elected Syndic it is necessary to be a lawyer or a public accountant domiciled in Argentina. Employees, directors or managers of the company or its parent or subsidiary companies may not be syndics. Shareholders may remove Syndics at their own discretion.
Governing body: The corporate authority governing the SA and adopting resolutions is the Shareholders’ Meeting, competent – among other issues – to approve the Annual Balance Sheet of the company, to appoint and/or remove its Directors and Syndics and to deal with any other item related to the company’s ordinary course of business.
Financial statements, Balance Sheets and Accounts SA: Annual financial statements must be submitted for the consideration of the Stakeholders’ Meeting. Argentine law provides that the Annual financial statements must be filed also with the Public Registry of Commerce.
The author of this post is Tomás García Navarro.
Cyprus is emerging as a new investment fund centre in Europe following the efforts for evolving and upgrading the regulatory and compliance framework which was initiated in the late 1990s. The enactment of the Alternative Investment Funds Law, No. 131(I)/2014 (AIF Law) is the latest development which aimed at the creation of an attractive and competitive environment for further enhancement and development of the alternative funds industry in Cyprus. The AIF Law replaced the previous regime under which Cyprus managed to develop into a regional domicile for investment funds and their managers.
The following possibilities for alternative investment funds (AIFs) were introduced by the AIF Law:
- Umbrella funds with multiple investment compartments/sub-funds which may adopt different investment policies and manage different pools of assets
- Transferability of shares
- Public offerings of AIF’s shares or units
- Listing of securities issued by AIFs
AIFs may be open-ended or closed-ended and may take one of the following legal forms:
- Fixed Capital Company
- Variable Capital Company
- Limited Partnership
- Common Fund (contractual)
The relevant rules applicable to the respective legal form are based on Anglo-Saxon common law principles which are incorporated in Cyprus law (company law, partnerships law and contract law etc.).
AIFs may have a limited or unlimited duration.
Investor Classification
AIFs may be established either to be marketed to retail investors or to professional and/or well informed investors (see below for the exception applicable to AIFs with limited number of persons). Investor classification is to be made on the following basis:
- Professional Investor: For an investor to be considered as professional investor the requirements for professional clients under Markets in Financial Instruments Directive 2004/39/EC (MIFID) must be satisfied. A basic characteristic of professional investors is the fact that they possess the experience, knowledge and expertise to make their own investment decisions and to properly assess the risks they incur.
- Well-Informed Investor: A well-informed investor is not a professional investor within the above meaning but one who:
- confirms in writing the well-informed investor status and awareness of the risks related with the proposed investment; and
- makes an investment of at least €125.000 or has been assessed as having the expertise, experience and knowledge in evaluating the suitability of the investment opportunity in the AIF by a credit institution, investment firm or a management company for Undertakings for the collective Investment in Transferable Securities (UCITS Management Company)
- Retail Investor: A retail investor is an investor who does not fulfil the above requirements so as to be classified as a professional or well-informed investor.
Types of AIFs
The AIF Law allows for the establishment of AIFs to be addressed to an unlimited number of investors as well as for funds addressed to a limited number of persons (maximum 75) who may only be professional and/or well-informed investors.
AIFs to be addressed to an unlimited number of investors must to comply with minimum initial capital requirements i.e. €125.000 if externally managed and €300.000 if self-managed.
AIFs may be subject to investment restrictions depending on the investor type, the category of the assets to be held in their portfolio and the overall investment policy to be adopted. On the other hand, AIFs with limited number of investors are subject to a lighter legal and regulatory framework and are not subject to investment restrictions or investment limits.
Management of AIFs
AIFs may be managed externally by a manager appointed to perform the management of the portfolio of assets and related services. Different entities may undertake this role depending on the type of AIF:
- For AIFs with unlimited number of investors the external manager may be:
- An Alternative Investment Fund Manager (AIFM) established under local law or under the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive
- A UCITS Management Company established under local law or under the Undertakings for the collective Investment in Transferable Securities Directive
- A MIFID Investment Firm established under local law
- An AIFM established in a third country but complying with the relevant provisions of the local legislation
- For AIFs with limited number of investors the external manager may be:
- A MIFID Investment Firm established under local law or the MIFID
- A UCITs Management Company established under local law
- An entity established under local law solely for the purpose of managing a specific AIF with limited number of investors
- An entity established in a third country and licensed to provide asset management services and subject to prudential supervision
In the case of AIFs which are companies, the AIF Law provides the option of self-management whereby the management of the portfolio of assets is performed by the board of directors subject to certain restrictions (cap on value of the assets under management, restrictions on leverage, lock-up periods).
Depositary
The depositary of an AIF may be a credit institution or a MIFID Investment Firm or other entity which is subject to prudential regulation and ongoing supervision and which is eligible to act as depositary under its home state legislation.
The depositary must have its registered office in Cyprus or in another member state of the European Union or in a third country, provided that the Cyprus Securities Exchange Commission has signed with the competent authorities of the third country a Memorandum of Understanding for Cooperation and Exchange of Information.
Under certain circumstances it is possible for small AIFs with limited number of persons not to appoint a depositary.
Utilisation of the AIFs
AIFs may be utilised for investments in a wide range of asset classes. Such funds have been established for investments in debt and equity securities as well as real estate and private equity. In a structure with multiple investment compartments/sub-funds, different compartments/sub-funds may invest in diverse asset classes.
Key benefits
- Cost-efficient and simple set-up process with fees being significantly lower than in the more mature fund centres e.g. Ireland and Luxembourg
- A single and accessible regulator for the alternative funds and their managers
- Flexibility as to the asset classes that may be included in the AIF portfolio
- Transparency, reporting and risk management aiming at investor protection
- Regulated environment in line with the European Union regulatory framework for Alternative Investment Fund Managers, MIFID Investment Firms and UCITSs
- Passporting of the marketing of funds in the European Union where the manager is an AIFM
- Redomiciliation in and out of Cyprus is possible
Taxation
Cyprus’ growth in this sector has been driven by the country’s tax treaty network, originally rendering it a jurisdiction for launching investments funds with investments primarily into Russia, the former Soviet republics and Eastern Europe but recently also in Asian countries.
Main aspects of tax treatment in Cyprus:
- Subject to 12.5% flat corporation tax
- Exemption from tax on dividends received by the AIF
- Exemption from tax on profits from sale of securities or other instruments (except where the securities are in companies owning immovable property in Cyprus)
- No subscription tax on assets of funds
- Exemption on capital gains tax from the sale of immovable property located outside Cyprus
- No capital gains tax on disposal of shares/units by the holders
- Benefiting from an extensive network of more than 50 double tax treaties offering interesting tax planning opportunities
In a rapidly changing funds industry, the options and opportunities available for the setting up and operation of alternative investment funds under the Cyprus regulatory regime are worth exploring by fund managers, investors and their advisors.
