The 8th annual Investment Migration Forum is wrapped. The forum gathered 30% more participants than a year before — more than 300 lawyers, officials and licensed agents of CBI programs from 40 countries. Heads of countries with citizenship and residence permit programs for investors attended.
Forum speakers in 2023 were:
Barbara Jamison, Head of Europe, London Convention Bureau;
Nadine Goldfoot, IMC Governing Board Member;
Thomas Anthony, CEO of Grenada CBI Unit;
Jose Alejandro Rojas, Minister of Private Investments in Panama;
Pavel Reshetnikov, Compliance Anti Money Laundering Officer.
Forum chairperson was Anya Sitaram, Former BBC World News anchor.
Consultant, Compliance Anti Money Laundering Officer, certified CAMS
Oksana Milczarek
Head of the Portugal Office
Esther Nyack-Alexis
Representative of the Grenada Office
Полина Рудая
Помощник юриста
What was discussed on the forum
The main presentations and debates at the forum focused on two related issues that are caused by global geopolitical tensions:
Distrust of governments and international regulatory organizations towards residence-by-investment and citizenship-by-investment programs.
Challenges related to payments under these programs, such as banks refusing to accept payments from citizens of certain countries.
"Black" and "grey" lists and economic sanctions prevent bona fide high-net-worth individuals and entrepreneurs from some countries from using the programs' potential. These individuals are willing to support the economy of a particular state in exchange for citizenship or a residence permit. This logic has no illegal or unjust base — only mutually beneficial cooperation between the country and the investor.
Solving the issues of distrust towards CBI. Since 2022, the programs have received many complaints, were deemed high-risk, and some of them were closed entirely.
Oksana Milczarek,
Head of the Portugal Office
The Portuguese government plans to close the Residence Permit for Investment, and the Parliament is already reviewing the bill. “Golden visas” will be converted into D2 visas for entrepreneurs; the conditions for investors will change. The opportunity to get a residence permit in Portugal for investment will remain for those who financially support cultural projects.
The only tool that can help solve the issue of distrust is a transparent, standardized, expanded and independent Due Diligence process.
Paul Lauber,
Consultant, Compliance Anti Money Laundering Officer, certified CAMS
When the vetting process is developed and conducted with due diligence and, more importantly, approved by international organizations and national governments, it will create a sufficient level of trust in the investment immigration industry and a high reputation for CBI programs worldwide.
For its part, Immigrant Invest only enters into contracts with prior verification of the investor. This way, we immediately identify “red flags” for the investor and reduce the risk of failure under the program to 1%.
Solving the issue of payments. Most participants in CBI programs want to improve the quality of life for themselves and their families. They want to travel without a visa, move to a country with a high standard of living, and finally — ensure the safety of their loved ones. Their home countries cannot provide such conditions and often belong to high-risk or sanctioned economies.
CBI mechanisms and Due Diligence procedures under the programs are not transparent to banks. Because of this, financial institutions view the investment immigration business as high-risk, requiring increased compliance with anti-income laundering legislation.
Both factors cause program-related transactions to be held for several months. Sometimes payments are not accepted.
Paul Lauber,
Consultant, Compliance Anti Money Laundering Officer, certified CAMS
If banks are aware of how agents of the programs conduct Due Diligence, banks will be able to trust the Due Diligence reports compiled for each investor and their family members.
Banks can therefore rely on official statements, supporting documents, compliance procedures, and personnel available to CBI service providers. A transparent and formal Due Diligence procedure will simplify and speed up banking operations.
Many investors use cryptocurrency to preserve the freedom of banking operations. This is a way out of the situation if the banks of the investor’s country are under sanctions.
Paul Lauber,
Consultant, Compliance Anti Money Laundering Officer, certified CAMS
Investors should consider that CBI programs do not accept payments in cryptocurrency, although sometimes such statements are made. The investor converts a cryptocurrency into a fiat currency and confirms the legality of the cryptocurrency funds. After this, the investor applies for the program following a regular procedure.
Representatives of Immigrant Invest at the forum: Polina Ruda (Austria), Esther Nyack-Alexis (Grenada), Oksana Milczarek (Portugal), Pavel Reshetnikov (Austria). Immigrant Invest was ranked among the Grenada program's Top 5 most successful agents. During the closing Gala Dinner, our team was seated next to the Prime Minister of Grenada
Main topics of Investment Migration Council 2022
IMC News: Updates & Insights from Around the World
The Future is Now: The Hottest Trends and How they will Forever Change Investment Migration
Citizenship by Investment: Meeting the Due Diligence Challenges of Sanctions, Payment Hurdles and Expediency
Revolutionising Due Diligence with AI: Exploring Emerging Technologies and Other Best Practices
Caribbean and US Round Table on Citizenship by Investment: A Model for international cooperation
Annual Investment Migration Forum
The forum is held under the auspices of the Investment Migration Council (IMC). Traditionally, the forum takes place in major capital cities, which are also financial centres of the world economy. In 2023, the forum was held for the 8th time. Last year, the forum took place in Brussels and in 2023 — in London.
IMC is a global association that brings together industry professionals, representatives of countries with investment programs, licensed program agents, lawyers and scientists in the field of citizenship, international migration and the global labour market.
IMC is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and has offices in London, New York, the Caribbean, Hong Kong, and Dubai.
