Memberships and Partnerships | Cyprus Company Formation

Memberships & Partnerships

Our Partners and Staff are Members of:

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of England & Wales | The Cyprus Institute of Certified Public Accountants | The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants of the UK | The International Tax Planing Association | The International Fiscal Association | The European American Tax Institute | The Society of Trust & Estate Practitioners | The Board of Directors of the Cyprus-Greece Business Association | The Cyprus Bar Association | Insitute of Directors | The Asia Offshore Association | A number of other internationally acclaimed business and professional associations – networks

We are Independent Partners with:

The Bank of Cyprus Group (the largest Bank in Cyprus) | Credit Agricole Indosuez | Dexia | AK Kotsomitis Accountancy & Tax Ltd | ILCOM LTD (Corporate Director – Management Services). Many other major banks & financial institutions worldwide.

For auditors and directors you may use any resident firms but, we reccomend after reviewing the firms’ procedures:

ILCOM LIMITED (DIRECTORS)

A K KOTSOMITIS ACCOUNTANCY & TAX LIMITED (AUDITORS)

The Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Cyprus

ICPAC is the only authorized Body that regulates and supervises the accountancy profession in Cyprus. The Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Cyprus acts as an organizational entity for the professional accountants. It supports and promotes their professional interests and protects their reputation. It supervises and controls its members and promotes their professional ethics via the code of conduct that it has established.

ICPAC’s main aim is to train, instruct and inform its members on issues that are necessary for the exercise of their professional activities. ICPAC also aims to spread the professionalism and the rules of ethics that govern its members to the environment in which it is activated.

International Fiscal Association

The International Fiscal Association (IFA) was established in 1938 with its headquarters in the Netherlands. It is the only non-governmental and non-sectoral international organisation dealing with fiscal matters.

Its objects are the study and advancement of international and comparative law in regard to public finance, specifically international and comparative fiscal law and the financial and economic aspects of taxation.

IFA seeks to achieve these objects through its annual Congresses and the scientific publications relating thereto as well as through scientific research. Although the operations of the IFA are essentially scientific in character, the subjects selected take account of current fiscal developments and changes in local legislation.

Membership of IFA now stands at nearly 11,000 from 94 countries. In 51 countries IFA members have established IFA Branches. Direct membership is possible in countries where there is as yet no IFA Branch. Please click here for a survey which gives an impression of the geographical spread of the members affiliated to the IFA Branches and a survey of the direct members per 27 September 2005.

Along with the increasing internationalization of the world’s economies, international tax issues have become more numerous and of greater importance. Since the end of the second World War IFA has played an essential role both in the development of certain principles of international taxation and in providing possible solutions to problems arising in their practical implementation. It has been able to do so because its membership consists of high level representatives from both the private and the public sectors, including the Courts, Universities and international governmental and non-governmental organizations and because the Association has maintained over the years high standards in its debates and conclusions. Thus IFA has offered the necessary forum to experts belonging to different sectors of society, where opinions on topics of international taxation can be exchanged with respect for each other’s background and responsibilities.

The Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners

The Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP) is a unique professional body providing members with a local, national and international learning and business network.

STEP provides education, training, representation and networking for its members, who are professionals specializing in trusts and estates, executorship, administration and related taxes. Members advise clients on the broad business of the management of personal finance.

Full members of STEP are the most experienced and senior practitioners in the field of trusts and estates. Mr. Aris Kotsomitis, our Chairman, is a certified member of The Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners.

STEP was founded with the aim of bringing together all the practitioners in the field and cutting across old established professional boundaries.

For complex matters, peace of mind can only be guaranteed by using properly qualified professionals. STEP members are experts from the legal, accounting and banking professions who can support you through every trust or estates issue – matters often not dealt with by the generalist adviser.

The Board of Directors of the Cyprus – Greece Business Association

The Cyprus-Greece Business Association was founded on 7th February 2005. Its main objective is to encourage, promote and develop the business relationships between Cyprus and Greece.

This is achieved through the submission of proposals to the governments of the two countries with ways and means to further grow their enterprising and economic relations, the recording and analyzing of different problems, as well as the organization of business events and the provision of important information.

The Cyprus-Greece Business Association ensures the smooth economic collaboration of the two countries and the growth and maintenance of the communication between Greek ant Cypriot businessmen in all sectors.

Focus Business Services (Cyprus) Ltd is an elected member of the Board of Directors of the Cyprus-Greece Business Association as well as an active member of the Association’s Problem-Solving Committee.

Cyprus Bar Association

The C.B.A council examines all the subjects that involve the profession and proceeds into such functions as it sees fit and according to other maters has the powers of preserving the honour and independence of the Advocacy body and to defend it from the judicial and executive authorities, to regulate subjects according to the advocacy practice and the deontology of the profession, among many other powers.

The C.B.A Council has three institutional sub-committees functioning:

Legislation Sub-committee, which examines when is necessary to submit reports to the existent Legislation of the Republic of Cyprus and for any other legal matters which are submitted from this committee and has the power to proceed to the Government for introduction of any legislation that seems desirable;
The Professional Training and Deontology Sub-committee, which is composed for the formation of regulations which regulate the training and deontology of the profession to the Republic and the co-ordination of councilors for professional behavior; and
The Executive sub-committee, which is composed from a permanent committee that has the power to handle and execute decisions on behalf of the C.B.A for matters that are considered of minimum significance so Council meetings, could be avoided or when it decides that the speeding up of the procedure is necessary.

Additional with the institutional subcommittees C.B.A has the creation and function subcommittees for Companies and Taxes Plan, Stock Exchange, Navigation, Environment, Human Rights, Representation for United Balkans Bar association, Representation to CCBE, and Extra judicial Reward.

Bank Of Cyprus Group

Founded in 1899, the Bank of Cyprus Group (the Group) is the leading Cypriot banking and financial services group. It has a dominant position in its home market and, since the early 1990s the Bank has been expanding rapidly in Greece, UK and Australia with representative offices present in the USA, Canada, South Africa, Russia and Romania.

Its market capitalization is the highest on the Cyprus Stock Exchange, representing approximately 32% of the market and it is also listed on the Athens stock exchange. It offers a comprehensive range of banking, financial and advisory services to the corporate, retail and government sectors.

Crédit Agricole Indosuez

Subsidiary of Calyon Corporate and Investment Bank, Crédit Agricole (Suisse) SA was formed on 19 March 2005 when the Crédit Lyonnais (Suisse) SA and the Crédit Agricole Indosuez (Suisse) SA merged together. The Bank’s presence in Switzerland dates back more than 125 years to 1876, when Crédit Lyonnais opened its first branch in Geneva. Its 1080 staff is divided between the head office in Geneva, the four branches (Lausanne, Lugano, Basle and Zürich) and the logistics centre in Vennes-Lausanne. Crédit Agricole (Suisse) SA is a universal bank that has developed three core areas of expertise:

Private Banking, which is the Bank’s main activity, with CHF 40 billion in client assets under management in 2003. Crédit Agricole Indosuez (Suisse) SA ranks among the leading foreign banks in Switzerland and efforts to expand the client base have been extended to the entire country and to the rest of Europe. The Bank is the largest subsidiary of Calyon Corporate and Investment Bank’s private banking network and provides its clients with a comprehensive range of products and services;
Financial Markets (Foreign Exchange, Treasury and Precious Metals) and
Corporate Banking, which covers two complementary activities: transactional commodity finance and commercial banking.

Dexia

Dexia was born out of the 1996 alliance of the two major European players in local public finance: Crédit Local in France and Crédit Communal in Belgium. Dexia forms one of the first cross-border mergers in the European banking sector, which is today one of the top fifteen banking groups in the euro zone.

Dexia operates on two principal markets: local public institutions and the retail market. On the first market, Dexia occupies a leading position on a world scale, and on the second its field of action is regional.

A.K. Kotsomitis Accountancy & Tax Ltd.

A.K. Kotsomitis Accountancy & Tax Ltd. combines many years of experience in Accounting, Auditing and Tax Services. It is headed by Aris Kotsomitis, our MD.

It is the network firm recommended and officially authorized to carry out audit work in Cyprus. AKK Accountancy & Tax Ltd is a member of The Cyprus Institute of Certified Public Accountants (ICPAC) and an Approved Training Practice of the UK’s Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA). In July 2005, AKK Accountancy & Tax was awarded with “Gold Employer” status by ACCA.

Asia Offshore Association

As Asia is rapidly developing itself as a key market for the offshore industry in the new millennium, the need for local practitioners and interested international players to keep themselves abreast with market and industry knowledge, as well as to build up a strong network are crucial in order to succeed in this growing market.

The Asia Offshore Association, previously known as Asia Pacific Offshore Institute, was founded to assist individuals and companies to achieve these aims. The Asia Offshore Association is the first Asia-Pacific oriented institute with an international perspective dedicated to represent the interests of practitioners in the offshore industry. Through the Institute, members can keep in touch with trends, generate business through networking, and maintain vital contacts and closer relationships with clients, counterparts as well as government officials in offshore jurisdictions.

Mr. Aris Kotsomitis, our Chairman, is a certified member of the Asia Offshore Association.

Contact one of our officers to initiate the incorporation of a Cyprus registered company and start reaping the full benefits of an onshore, low-tax, EU jurisdiction. Simply fill in the contact box below or contact us by email on enquiries@fbscyprus.com