13,500 IBCs Struck Off as Antigua and Barbuda Tightens Compliance Framework

Prime Minister Gaston Browne says about 13,500 international business companies have been removed from the corporate registry as authorities move to strengthen compliance and oversight in the offshore sector.

“On the issue of striking off a number of companies, you can see that we are cleaning up the IBC sector in particular,” Browne said on the Browne and Browne show. “That is the offshore sector, in which as many as 13,500 were actually struck off.”

He said the removals targeted companies that failed to meet compliance requirements, describing the action as evidence of regulatory enforcement rather than neglect.

“So when you would have had that level of cooperation, in which we’re saying, ‘Look, you’re not compliant for whatever reason, and we would have deleted them from the registry,’ it shows strong commitment on the part of our jurisdiction,” Browne said.

The Prime Minister said additional companies exited the sector voluntarily as oversight intensified. “And similarly, about 3,500, they have agreed to cooperate, and they would have dissolved themselves,” he said.

Browne said the clean-up reflects a broader reassessment of the offshore industry’s value to the country. “So, again, you know, we have cleaned up the country big time, the offshore sector,” he said, adding, “It’s a difficult sector right now, and I don’t find that the yield that we’re getting from it is sufficient.”

The comments were made during a discussion on Antigua and Barbuda’s compliance record following its recent assessment by the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes.

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