Questions about starting a cryptocurrency business! (Cayman Islands/SVG)

[Galactic]

Hi everyone,

I'm asking for your help today to ask for clarification on setting up a company in an offshore country. We are an early stage startup wishing to create a token and NFTs, and deploy them in a decentralized manner. Our criteria are the absence of taxation on our activity and privacy. We will not be resident in the jurisdiction. We have considered a number of jurisdictions, including the Cayman Islands and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. However, several questions remain:

How can we find a good law firm to launch our company?
We found results on search engines such as BBCIncorp, LegalBison, Eternity Law International, but we doubt their legitimacy due to the reviews posted on OffshoreCorpTalk.

How much does it usually cost to set up a company in the Cayman Islands and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines?
We want to save our funding on the legal side, so that we can concentrate more on technical development.

In the future, we plan to possibly create another token without any financial interest (like a memecoin) in the universe of our project.
Does this also require a VASP license?

The questions may seem simple to some of you, but that's because we're total beginners in this sphere. We welcome all suggestions.

Thanks! ​

 

[wellington]

Well - first stop is the US SEC

 

[Sols]

How can we find a good law firm to launch our company?
We found results on search engines such as BBCIncorp, LegalBison, Eternity Law International, but we doubt their legitimacy due to the reviews posted on OffshoreCorpTalk.​

In the Cayman Islands, I'd start with the usual big ones: Harneys, Carey Olsen, Conyers, Mourant, Walkers, and Ogier.

You can find law firms through websites like Legal500 and Chambers.com, and look for public information (media, press releases) that can give you hints about which law firms on the islands have experience.

There is no one comparable in SVG. Elizabeth Law is decent but when the underlying laws are unclear, you can't really expect much from a lawyer.

How much does it usually cost to set up a company in the Cayman Islands and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines?
We want to save our funding on the legal side, so that we can concentrate more on technical development.​

SVG: at the moment, you're looking just at the cost of incorporation, and admin costs. A few thousand will probably do the trick. However, there are regulatory changes in the works.

Notice To All Virtual Assets Service Providers And Persons Seeking To Conduct Business As A Virtual Asset Service Provider – Financial Services Authority

svgfsa.com

Caymans: assuming you're getting a license, budget at least a few hundred thousand. Not only because incorporation and admin/management costs are several times more expensive than in SVG but also because CIMA (Monetary, Regulatory and Advisory Body of the Cayman Islands- CIMA) expects you to have decent capital in the company.

In the future, we plan to possibly create another token without any financial interest (like a memecoin) in the universe of our project.
Does this also require a VASP license?​

Maybe. Depends where you market it, how it works, what it does, and so on and so forth.

 

[Galactic]

You can find law firms through websites like Legal500 and Chambers.com, and look for public information (media, press releases) that can give you hints about which law firms on the islands have experience.

Thanks for the recommendations, they'll be useful.

You can find law firms through websites like Legal500 and Chambers.com, and look for public information (media, press releases) that can give you hints about which law firms on the islands have experience.

SVG: at the moment, you're looking just at the cost of incorporation, and admin costs. A few thousand will probably do the trick. However, there are regulatory changes in the works.

Notice To All Virtual Assets Service Providers And Persons Seeking To Conduct Business As A Virtual Asset Service Provider – Financial Services Authority

svgfsa.com

Does this mean that, for the time being, it's not required to have a VASP license in SVG?

Caymans: assuming you're getting a license, budget at least a few hundred thousand. Not only because incorporation and admin/management costs are several times more expensive than in SVG but also because CIMA (Monetary, Regulatory and Advisory Body of the Cayman Islands- CIMA) expects you to have decent capital in the company.

Do you know of any jurisdictions that offer privacy, low taxes, and have a cheap VASP license or none at all? I may be asking for paradise, but if on top of that this jurisdiction isn't blacklisted, that would be perfect.

 

[Sols]

Does this mean that, for the time being, it's not required to have a VASP license in SVG?

Yes, maybe, but probably not for long.

VASP licensing isn't just about where you operate. You should also consider where your customers are based. This is a bit of a headache in crossborder financial services. Even if you get a VASP license or base yourself somewhere where a VASP license isn't required/doesn't exit, you might still end up breaking the law if you target certain markets.

Getting a VASP license in Caymans may give you more protection, credibility, and leeway than if you take customers entirely without a license. But it can also be effectively the same in the eyes of some especially curmudgeonly regulators.

Do you know of any jurisdictions that offer privacy, low taxes, and have a cheap VASP license or none at all? I may be asking for paradise, but if on top of that this jurisdiction isn't blacklisted, that would be perfect.

TBH, not something I keep track of.

The cheapest but still somewhat respectable option is probably Polish VASP registration (not a license). San Marino might also be interesting. See San Marino Setup – Set up your fintech, cryptoasset or innovative project in the Republic of San Marino But they aren't the secretive tax havens you're thinking of if your mindset is more towards Caymans and SVG.

Maybe Marshall Islands?

 

[JackAlabama]

Hi everyone,

I'm asking for your help today to ask for clarification on setting up a company in an offshore country. We are an early stage startup wishing to create a token and NFTs, and deploy them in a decentralized manner.​

How will this be done and how are you gonna be avoiding the classical DINO case?

Our criteria are the absence of taxation on our activity and privacy. We will not be resident in the jurisdiction. We have considered a number of jurisdictions, including the Cayman Islands and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. However, several questions remain:

How can we find a good law firm to launch our company?
We found results on search engines such as BBCIncorp, LegalBison, Eternity Law International, but we doubt their legitimacy due to the reviews posted on OffshoreCorpTalk.

How much does it usually cost to set up a company in the Cayman Islands and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines?
We want to save our funding on the legal side, so that we can concentrate more on technical development.

In the future, we plan to possibly create another token without any financial interest (like a memecoin) in the universe of our project.
Does this also require a VASP license?

The questions may seem simple to some of you, but that's because we're total beginners in this sphere. We welcome all suggestions.

Thanks! ​

Since the sec and other usa institutions are openly out hunting for blood under the guise of securities fraud (issuing unregistered securities), you gotta be extra careful.

You could do a dao, or not incorporate and not get a classical corporation at all.

Or issue normal equity and not another token, where up to today all have been useless (besides enriching their respective insider cronies).
Or go with the adequate VASP licensing and public disclosure of the tokenomics, but this is gonna be pretty expensive.

 

[wellington]

How will this be done and how are you gonna be avoiding the classical DINO case?


Since the sec and other usa institutions are openly out hunting for blood under the guise of securities fraud (issuing unregistered securities), you gotta be extra careful.

You could do a dao, or not incorporate and not get a classical corporation at all.

Or issue normal equity and not another token, where up to today all have been useless (besides enriching their respective insider cronies).
Or go with the adequate VASP licensing and public disclosure of the tokenomics, but this is gonna be pretty expensive.

They recently indicted someone because they failed to deliver a game on low sales volume and basically sold the NFT the DOj claimed that the incentive to buy the NFT was the so called game as such it was fraud

DOJ doesn’t care about laws of incorporation country or contracts agreed to. They just indict and the SEC sues once blood is drawn

 

[JackAlabama]

They recently indicted someone because they failed to deliver a game on low sales volume and basically sold the NFT the DOj claimed that the incentive to buy the NFT was the so called game as such it was fraud

DOJ doesn’t care about laws of incorporation country or contracts agreed to. They just indict and the SEC sues once blood is drawn

Exactly, times have changed. Its a pretty nasty environment right now with usa going berserk.

 

[Galactic]

The cheapest but still somewhat respectable option is probably Polish VASP registration (not a license). San Marino might also be interesting. See San Marino Setup – Set up your fintech, cryptoasset or innovative project in the Republic of San Marino But they aren't the secretive tax havens you're thinking of if your mindset is more towards Caymans and SVG.

Maybe Marshall Islands?

Interesting! It's true that San Marino can be a destination to look at.
From what I've read, creating a token there is directly compliant with MiCa regulations.
As for the Marshalls Islands, this could be an interesting place to wrap a DAO.

How will this be done and how are you gonna be avoiding the classical DINO case?

Tokeneomics will be completely transparent, with no possibility of modifying the contract. The roadmap will be properly defined and followed. Is that enough? If you're asking how to do it in a decentralized way, isn't deploying smart contracts on existing decentralized blockchains enough?

You could do a dao, or not incorporate and not get a classical corporation at all.

Isn't that illegal?

 

[CoinMaster]

Isn't that illegal?

yes it is illegal, sometimes you have to sort the information you get in replies.

 

[Legal]

Hi everyone,

I'm asking for your help today to ask for clarification on setting up a company in an offshore country. We are an early stage startup wishing to create a token and NFTs, and deploy them in a decentralized manner. Our criteria are the absence of taxation on our activity and privacy. We will not be resident in the jurisdiction. We have considered a number of jurisdictions, including the Cayman Islands and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. However, several questions remain:

How can we find a good law firm to launch our company?
We found results on search engines such as BBCIncorp, LegalBison, Eternity Law International, but we doubt their legitimacy due to the reviews posted on OffshoreCorpTalk.

How much does it usually cost to set up a company in the Cayman Islands and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines?
We want to save our funding on the legal side, so that we can concentrate more on technical development.

In the future, we plan to possibly create another token without any financial interest (like a memecoin) in the universe of our project.
Does this also require a VASP license?

The questions may seem simple to some of you, but that's because we're total beginners in this sphere. We welcome all suggestions.

Thanks! ​

SVG if you need unregulated place, and Cayman if you need regulated. Price is accordingly.

In the Cayman Islands, I'd start with the usual big ones: Harneys, Carey Olsen, Conyers, Mourant, Walkers, and Ogier.

You can find law firms through websites like Legal500 and Chambers.com, and look for public information (media, press releases) that can give you hints about which law firms on the islands have experience.

There is no one comparable in SVG. Elizabeth Law is decent but when the underlying laws are unclear, you can't really expect much from a lawyer.


SVG: at the moment, you're looking just at the cost of incorporation, and admin costs. A few thousand will probably do the trick. However, there are regulatory changes in the works.

Notice To All Virtual Assets Service Providers And Persons Seeking To Conduct Business As A Virtual Asset Service Provider – Financial Services Authority

svgfsa.com

Caymans: assuming you're getting a license, budget at least a few hundred thousand. Not only because incorporation and admin/management costs are several times more expensive than in SVG but also because CIMA (Monetary, Regulatory and Advisory Body of the Cayman Islands- CIMA) expects you to have decent capital in the company.


Maybe. Depends where you market it, how it works, what it does, and so on and so forth.

SVG passed a law that is not in force. As you noticed this regulation, can you show me where the activation date is indicated?

 

[JackAlabama]

Interesting! It's true that San Marino can be a destination to look at.
From what I've read, creating a token there is directly compliant with MiCa regulations.
As for the Marshalls Islands, this could be an interesting place to wrap a DAO.


Tokeneomics will be completely transparent, with no possibility of modifying the contract. The roadmap will be properly defined and followed. Is that enough? If you're asking how to do it in a decentralized way, isn't deploying smart contracts on existing decentralized blockchains enough?

Isn't that illegal?

thats a funny question. Not more illegal than what you're planning of doing (offering unregistered securities and taking steps to disguise that fact).

 

[Sols]

SVG passed a law that is not in force. As you noticed this regulation, can you show me where the activation date is indicated?

Don't think there is one yet. They rushed to draft the law ahead of their CFATF-GAFIC mutual evaluation report that came out in January 2024. In that report (link), SVG is rated as "Partly Compliant" for having passed a law but not yet being in force.

 

[Vernon]

If you plan to have a (real) DAO that needs to interact with the real world (e.g. for banks, contracts, etc.), the Cayman Foundation Company is the most used option afaik.

I don't know much about the EU but if the activity is not regulated, the new rules re whitepaper, registration may be beneficial if it's just a plain token issuance. Anything else (regulated activities, e.g. derivatives, securities, but also having employees, social security etc) is a nightmare in the EU.

For token issuance (to the general public not a private sale): incorporate a BVI or Panama entity. This can be wound down once the sale is completed. Raised funds go to the Foundation.
Get legal advice (and tax advice in your place of residence...). The Cayman firms listed above are ok.
Cost estim. $30-35k a year, may be $50k in the first year.

There are def cheaper and more cowboy-ey options out there.

 

[369]

make sure you exclude all customers from countries like US,CN etc

 

[jafo]

CN

(1) Why China?

(2) I thought they had NO extraterritorial influence to go after non-Chinese. Have I been misled?

(3) Also, to date, China has NEVER requested the extradition of a non-Chinese who did NOT commit a crime while physically inside of China.
It can be confirmed here: View Red Notices
Or is Interpol fudging the data to benefit China?

 

[369]

(1) Why China?

(2) I thought they had NO extraterritorial influence to go after non-Chinese. Have I been misled?

(3) Also, to date, China has NEVER requested the extradition of a non-Chinese who did NOT commit a crime while physically inside of China.
It can be confirmed here: View Red Notices
Or is Interpol fudging the data to benefit China?

Can't tell exectly why china but that was recommend by our lawyers a year ago

 

[aniglo22]

(1) Why China?

(2) I thought they had NO extraterritorial influence to go after non-Chinese. Have I been misled?

(3) Also, to date, China has NEVER requested the extradition of a non-Chinese who did NOT commit a crime while physically inside of China.
It can be confirmed here: View Red Notices
Or is Interpol fudging the data to benefit China?

Because crypto exchanges are banned in china since 2021 . But I don't really see any other dangers besides being blocked by gfoc(great firewall of china ).

 

[jafo]

Because crypto exchanges are banned in china since 2021 . But I don't really see any other dangers besides being blocked by gfoc(great firewall of china ).

That makes sense! Thanks!

 

[Billybob69]

Hi everyone,

I'm asking for your help today to ask for clarification on setting up a company in an offshore country. We are an early stage startup wishing to create a token and NFTs, and deploy them in a decentralized manner. Our criteria are the absence of taxation on our activity and privacy. We will not be resident in the jurisdiction. We have considered a number of jurisdictions, including the Cayman Islands and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. However, several questions remain:

How can we find a good law firm to launch our company?
We found results on search engines such as BBCIncorp, LegalBison, Eternity Law International, but we doubt their legitimacy due to the reviews posted on OffshoreCorpTalk.

How much does it usually cost to set up a company in the Cayman Islands and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines?
We want to save our funding on the legal side, so that we can concentrate more on technical development.

In the future, we plan to possibly create another token without any financial interest (like a memecoin) in the universe of our project.
Does this also require a VASP license?

The questions may seem simple to some of you, but that's because we're total beginners in this sphere. We welcome all suggestions.

Thanks! ​

Have you made any progress with this?