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Multinational companies and governments around the world are increasingly looking to Africa as a new business destination. Africa's economy has grown at a rate of around 5.3% per year over the last decade and six of the world's ten fastest growing economies are located here. These countries have a fast-growing middle class that contributes to rapid urbanization that is increasing faster than their cities' infrastructure can keep up. It is a common misconception that many economies in Africa are heavily dependent on energy production. In reality, the oil and gas sector accounted for only 11% of Nigeria's GDP in 2014, while the construction sector accounted for 20%.

When considering doing business in Africa, it is not a matter of choosing just one country or all 54; A regional approach makes more sense. Sub-Saharan Africa, for example, refers to sub-Saharan countries such as Angola, Kenya, South Africa and Nigeria. Many companies already doing business in Africa are separating their businesses in North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa due to the stark economic, linguistic and cultural differences between the two regions. Here are our top 5 African countries for doing business:

Mauritius
Mauritius is known for offering an extremely favorable business environment for investment and business growth. The process of incorporating a company and starting new business activities in Mauritius is believed to be straightforward and relatively easy. Mauritius' economy is mainly based on textiles, tourism, sugar and financial services, although recently other sectors such as renewable energy and information technology are expanding rapidly. The World Bank ranked Mauritius 49th in its Doing Business 2017 ranking, largely due to its pro-business approach to dealing with building permits, enforcing contracts and protecting minority investors. Another ranking of African countries places Mauritius first based on factors such as law and security, economy, human development and human rights.

Rwanda
Despite nearly a decade of Rwanda's civil war, the country's leaders and citizens alike have worked to achieve a healthy business climate and a strong overall economy. According to the World Bank, Rwanda is the second easiest place to do business in Africa and ranks 56th in the Doing Business ranking. This is because the procedures for registering a property, obtaining credit and trading across borders have been greatly simplified. Tourism is currently the fastest growing sector in Rwanda. According to our research, businesses can be incorporated and operating in as little as three days.

Botswana
Since gaining independence, Botswana has had one of the fastest per capita economic growth rates in the world. As the government works to diversify the country's profitable industries, the mining of diamonds and other precious metals is currently the main contributor to the country's economy. Recently, Botswana has managed to reduce the time it takes for various processes including import and export and business formation procedures. In addition, technological upgrades have reduced the average court length for commercial disputes to 625 days (from 987 days in 2008). Thanks to these improvements, Botswana ranks 71st in the World Bank's Doing Business 2017 ranking.

South Africa
South Africa's key industries are automobile manufacturing, tourism, mining and information and communication technologies. South Africa has managed to simplify its import and export procedures, resulting in less time and fewer documents required. In addition, the South African authorities have simplified tax legislation, reducing the number of hours required to prepare tax reports. The World Bank ranked South Africa 74th for ease of doing business in 2017.

Kenya
Another country to keep an eye on is Kenya, which is currently making huge investments in sectors such as telecom, transport and energy. With a tech-savvy workforce and high-speed internet, Kenya stands out as one of the top countries in Africa for tech startups, while its diversified economy, strong ownership rights, excellent tourism sector and improving infrastructure make it a great location for general start a new company. If you have further questions about company formation or banking in Africa. Please contact us now.

An offshore company is usually referred to as a company incorporated for the purpose of doing business outside of its country of registration. This means that such a company can be registered and operated outside the national borders of a person or company. This can be particularly worthwhile when it comes to legal, financial or tax advantages. A company can also legally move abroad to benefit from relaxed regulations, or in other words, to benefit from international laws. This is also the main reason why business people decide to set up a company abroad.

Some of the countries are deliberately making their local business attractive to leverage foreign capital and investment. The well organized and well known worldwide offshore destinations are UK, USA, Belize, Cyprus, Hong Kong, Dominica, Singapore, Seychelles, Panama and St Kitts & Nevis to name a few. Buying a business remotely these days is advantageous and easy to do.

Advantages of offshore companies
There are certain advantages of running an offshore company. For example property protection when a person has a lot of money and can take such an opportunity to protect them from lawsuits and divorce settlements. Another benefit is low taxes. Some jurisdictions are called tax havens due to the level of taxation that depends on the jurisdiction: tax exemptions, flat taxes, 0% capital gains tax, etc. The other advantage is related to international expansion when a company encounters many legal and bureaucratic issues in its homeland. Other benefits include: lower costs of doing business, tax deferral, compounding of deferred tax profits, easy annual reporting, multiple revenue streams, VAT savings on services, and anonymity.

Normally, the benefits to be derived from an offshore company depend on the jurisdiction of the offshore company and to some extent also on the laws of the country of residence of the owner of the company. Because of this, business people need to be mindful of the offshore jurisdiction they choose and take into account the local laws of that country.

Incorporation procedures for offshore companies
There are only a few basic steps that need to be taken to incorporate a company in Hong Kong, Belize, Seychelles or St Kitts & Nevis. Firstly, the costs of the basic services to form a company must be covered, which include a certificate of incorporation, a decision on renting an office and a list of directors (approx. €700). Second, there is an additional fee for privacy; depending on the chosen law firm (approx. 400 €). There is also a fee for opening a bank account with personal presence, which is required to open it for the sake of the businessman's security, a fee for obtaining a logo, rubber stamp, seal, name tag, as well as fees for apostille, virtual offices, etc. A person must provide their personal credit card details and contact information. There is also a mandate to be signed that specifies who has the right to control the opened bank account, add and remove signers and close it. It depends on the articles of association of the company.

Frequently, the above services may also optionally include the formation of international trading companies, the provision of a registered agent, the provision of business management, document preservation and business administration services, governance, equity participation, offshore fund formation, as well as assistance with the licensing of Offshore insurance includes companies and offshore banks, offshore bank account setup, virtual office services and corporate searches. These services can be offered and provided by professionals such as high net worth individuals, private entrepreneurs, professional advisors, accountants and legal advisers working in local businesses of local jurisdictions in Hong Kong, Belize, Seychelles or St Kitts and Nevis etc.

There are many aspects to consider when comparing different countries where you can set up your business. Although it highly depends on the company structure and business activities, each country has its own procedures and requirements that can facilitate or, on the contrary, complicate the operation of your company. These aspects can be related to the tax policy, hiring of employees and even the political stability of the country. Equally important is the process of incorporation of the company. Each country has its own process, timeline and requirements to follow when starting a business and often these processes indicate the level of bureaucracy and business environment in that jurisdiction.
Various jurisdictions offer the opportunity to go through the company formation process online, which means it takes less time and effort and the entrepreneur is able to set up his or her business from anywhere in the world without leaving their home or office . This is beneficial for the entrepreneur as the incorporation process usually takes less time and the company can start operating sooner. It also points out that the jurisdiction has advanced information systems and other government services are most likely available online as well.

South Africa
South Africa is one of the jurisdictions where you can register your company online in a few simple steps:

Select your preferred type of company and fill out the relevant application form online. You will then receive a confirmation email with a payment reference number.
The first available company name will be reserved with the Companies Commission and the application for incorporation with the reserved name and other documents will be filed for registration.
You will receive a company registration certificate COR14.3 with company tax number by email. You will also receive an email with links to download your company registration documents.
With your COR14.3 company registration certificate, you can open a business account and also apply for a tax clearance certificate and/or an affidavit.

Australia
Australia also offers to register your company online. This is currently a beta service and is still under development, but it is already possible to integrate your business online. The online business registration service is currently available for new businesses starting as a joint venture, sole proprietorship, trust, company or partnership who can apply for a company name, ABN (Australian Business Number) and business and tax registrations. Pension funds can also use this online service in the future. This service is also available to existing companies with an ABN and can apply for tax registration or an AUSkey login. The Australian online business registration service is organized in three easy steps:

Complete an online application and select an available company name. The company name search engine is available online for free.
Complete a registration fee and file the incorporation application with ASIC (Australian Securities and Investments Commission) and you will receive an email confirming your filing.
You will receive an ACN and ASIC certificate by email within 2 minutes along with the company register and tax receipt. If you have also requested an ABN, you will receive this via email within 1 hour during business hours. If domain names have been ordered, they will be registered immediately. With these documents you can open a bank account.

Other jurisdictions

offer company formation online. For example, if your company is limited to shares and has standard articles of incorporation, it can be registered in the UK in 24 hours for £12 (compared to 8-10 days and £40 if applying by post).

Malta's Citizenship by Investment Program is an ideal option for families looking to relocate their business and / or personal affairs to the European Union. Maltese citizenship granted through this program is valid for life and can even be passed on to your children and their descendants.

Last year more than 1000 applicants took part in this program and contributed an additional one billion euros in direct investments in the Maltese economy. Malta has a stable political climate and, above all, a growing economy, even in times of financial crisis.

Maltese citizenship offers investors a number of advantages. First, you can travel to 166 countries without a visa, including Canada, the United States of America, and the EU. Second, it gives you the right to live, study and work in 28 countries of the European Union plus Switzerland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Iceland.

Malta is a stable, safe (it has one of the lowest crime rates in Europe) and neutral country with an extremely friendly population and a high standard of living (its education and health systems have long been among the highest rated in Europe). Malta's fusion of European lifestyle, Mediterranean quality of life, pleasant climate (with approx. 300 days of sunshine per year), delicious food and absolute security would be great for you and your family. The family entitlement includes the main applicant's spouse and parents, children under the age of 18 and unmarried dependent adult children under the age of 27.

As mentioned earlier, once you become a Maltese citizen, your children are automatically entitled to citizenship. Obtaining Maltese citizenship is a very efficient process and you will be informed of the outcome of your application within just four months. Note that the 12-month processing time for passport applications includes these four months. In addition to all these advantages, you enjoy tax advantages without inheritance, wealth and inheritance tax. Malta has double taxation treaties with 60 countries. In addition, under Maltese law, you are not required to give up your existing citizenship, as having dual citizenship is not restricted.

To apply for dual citizenship through the Citizenship for Investment program, the applicant must pay a minimum of EUR 650,000 to Malta, while spouses must pay EUR 25,000 (like unmarried children under the age of 18). Unmarried children under 25 but older than 18 must pay EUR 50,000 each (as do dependent parents aged 55 and over).

Applicants for Malta's Citizenship for Investment program are required to invest at least EUR 150,000 in government bonds. In addition to these requirements, the applicant must choose one of the following options: to buy a property for at least 350,000 euros, to keep the property for at least five years or to rent a property for 160,000 euros for at least five years. After purchasing a property or signing a property lease in Malta, applicants are issued with a Maltese identity card (eResidence Card).

As part of the program, the Maltese government is running a four-step process to thoroughly evaluate all candidates. All applicants must be in good standing with no criminal record and the Maltese government is conducting extensive criminal investigations with the International Criminal Court, INTERPOL and other agencies and sources. Candidates are also required to provide a police certificate prior to being approved for a European passport.

In order to participate in the Maltese Citizenship through Investment program, applicants must provide documents relating to their state of health. Applicants should demonstrate that they do not suffer from infectious diseases and that they have international health insurance. If all of these requirements are met, applicants will face no further obstacles on the path to Maltese citizenship.