Panama
Investment Fund
Minimum Regulations
If you are interested in incorporating an International Private Fund where you could have up to 20 investors you should consider a Panama Private fund (“20-FP”).
Advantages of a Panama Fund
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Once a private fund is established there is no requirement to register with, or notify the Superintendency of the Securities Market. Additionally, this type of private fund is not required to comply with the provisions of the Regulations of a 50-FP
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There is no restriction on the type of assets the private fund can invest in
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The directors of the private fund do not need to be based in Panama
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If the private fund holds assets locally in Panama it may require additional regulations in Panama
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A private fund of up to 20 investors does not need an auditor, a custodian or investment manager
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A 20-FP has a very light regulatory touch in Panama and can be established relatively quickly and cost effectively
Information about a Panama Fund
The operation of a Panama Private Fund is governed by Decree-Law No.1 of July 8, 1999 (the “Securities Act”) together with Regulation No.5 of July 23, 2004 (the “Regulations”) issued by the Superintendency of the Securities Market (the “SSM”), which is the government body responsible for regulating funds in Panama.
The name of a Panama Private Fund may be in any
language and must include one of the following
legal endings:
Incorporated, Corporation, Sociedad Anonima,
Inc., Corp., S.A. Note the name must include the
word “Fund” before the
legal ending.
The name must be different from any existing or reserved corporate name in Panama.
Each Panama Private Fund must have a Panama
registered office address and agent, who is an
attorney or a law
firm.
Principal office address (business address) of the corporation may be in any country.
Our incorporation fee includes a Panama registered offices address and registered agent for the first year.
The shares of a private fund are to be offered on
a private basis rather than to the general
public, there may be up
to 20 shareholders/investors.
It is essential that the corporate documents of
the fund state that there will be no more than
20
shareholders/investors.
Every Panama Private Fund shall be managed by the
Board of Directors. A minimum of 3 directors is
required. Corporate
directors are not permitted. All directors must
be individuals of full age (at least 18 years
old). Residents of any
country may be appointed as directors.
The Board of Directors appoints officers
(President, Secretary and Treasurer). Officers
must be individuals. Officers
may be residents of any country. One person may
hold more than one officer position. No officer
needs to be a
director.
If you do not have 3 directors or need an extra layer of privacy protection, our company is able to provide nominees .
The authorized capital of a private fund is the
sum of US$10,000.00, divided into: 10,000,000
common, registered
shares with a par value of five one-hundredths
of a cent (US$0.0005) each. 10,000,000
preferred, registered shares
with a par value of five one-hundredths of a
cent (US$0.0005) each. The capital may be
modified by the issuance of
additional shares and also by varying the par
value, class and rights of said shares. It is
expressly prohibited to
issue bearer shares.
Each Panama Corporation must pay the
annual
renewal fee
starting from the
second year. Our annual fees are listed in the
Fee Schedule.
Information about shareholders and beneficial
owners is not filed with the Public Registry
Office and not available
to the public.
Names and addresses of directors and officers are
included in the Articles of Incorporation.
Therefore, such
information is available to the public.
Our company assists clients with protection of their privacy by offering nominee services .
A private fund that has 20 investors does not need an auditor, a custodian or investment manager.
There are no statutory requirements of audit for
Panama international companies. Accounting
records are required and
may be kept in any country. Directors of the
private fund are required to provide the address
of accounting records
to their Panama Registered Agent.
Annual meetings are not required. Board of
directors may decide to conduct an annual
meeting of shareholders. Such
meeting shall be held within Panama unless
otherwise stated in the Articles of
Incorporation or By-Laws.
Incorporation of Panamanian Fund takes 10 to 13
business days. Preparation of all internal
documents takes an
additional 3 to 5 business days.