International Business Companies (IBCs)
Any person may singly or jointly with others, by subscribing to a Memorandum and to Articles, incorporate a company under the International Business Companies Act. Companies incorporated under the Act are not permitted to:
- carry on business with persons resident in Montserrat;
- own an interest in real property situated in Montserrat, other than a lease of property for use as an office from which to communicate with members or where books and records of the company;
- accept banking deposits from persons resident in Montserrat;
- accept contracts of insurance from persons resident in Montserrat.
A company may be incorporated under the International Business Companies Act for any object or purpose not prohibited under this Act or under any other law for the time being in force in Montserrat.
The Memorandum of a company incorporated under the Act must include—
- the name of the company;
- the address within Montserrat of the registered office of the company;
- the name and address within Montserrat of the registered agent of the company;
- the objects or purposes for which the company is to be incorporated;
- the currency in which shares in the company shall be issued;
- a statement of the authorized capital of the company setting forth the aggregate of the par value of all shares with par value that the company is authorized to issue and the amount, if any, to be represented by shares without par value that the company is authorized to issue;
- a statement of the number of classes and series of shares, the number of shares of each such class and series and the par value of shares with par value and that shares may be without par value, if that is the case;
- a statement of the designations, powers, preferences and rights, and the qualifications, limitations or restrictions of each class and series of shares that the company is authorized to issue, unless the directors are to be authorized to fix any such designations, powers, preferences, rights, qualifications, limitations and restrictions, and in that case, an express grant of such authority as may be desired to grant to the directors to fix by a resolution any such designations, powers, preferences, rights, qualifications, limitations and restrictions that have not been fixed by the Memorandum;
- the number of bearer shares as registered shares and the number of bearer shares as bearer shares; whether registered shares may be exchanged for bearer shares and whether bearer shares may be exchanged for registered shares; and
- if bearer shares are authorized to be issued, the manner in which a required notice to members is to be given to the holders of bearer shares.