Through an act of law of the Liberian legislature, since 2000 LISCR LLC, a US owned and operated company with headquarters in Vienna, Virginia has administered the Registry. It also acts, on behalf of the Liberian Minister of Foreign Affairs, as the exclusive Registered Agent for all non-resident domestic Liberian business entities, through The LISCR Trust Company.  The agreement with the Government of Liberia has recently been extended for a further ten years.

Today the Registry is again moving ahead into a new era of strong growth against a background of resurgence and renewed political stability.  In 2006, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, a US educated economist with experience at the World Bank and Citibank, became Africa’s first elected female Head of State of Liberia’s democracy. Today, Liberia is receiving significant levels of international aid and material investments from, among others, the US, the EU and China. The Registry operates free from political influence and sanctions of any kind.  Indeed, a UN Panel of Experts published a report in 2003, after a thorough review of the financial and operational performance of LISCR and its agreement with Liberia, which gave the Registry a clean bill of health. Further, bodies such as the OECD, FATF and the G20 remain comfortable with Liberia and the laws that govern its Registry.

Getting to better know and reach out to our clients is something that the Registry is continually striving to improve. This has lead to attendance at corporate conferences in Cyprus, Dubai, Hong Kong, London, Monaco, Geneva, Shanghai, Singapore and Zürich.  Another effort has been to provide internal corporate seminars to banks, corporate secretarial, accounting and law firms.  A number of firms in Hong Kong, London and New York have already granted Continuing Professional Education Credits to employees who have attended our seminars.  In May, the Zürich office started a program of monthly lunch meetings for local clients on the Registry, its procedures and the documentation it issues. In October, the Piraeus office hosted an open seminar that involved guest speakers who spoke on the role of the private banker, the tax consequences of doing business with U.S. connections, and the use of private foundations. Over 100 local clients from Greece attended. As to future events, we will be attending and exhibiting at the Shorex Wealth Management Forum in Geneva in December. Please visit us at Stand 41.

As well as informing clients on future meeting opportunities, we intend to feature a different topic each edition to keep clients updated on the services and entities available from the Liberian Registry.

There is no requirement for Liberian corporations to file the names of officers, directors or shareholders. However, Liberian corporations may wish to file such information voluntarily in support of their business activities.

Corporations can submit voluntary filings to any LISCR office for filing with the Registry. Upon filing, a duplicate copy is issued to the corporation. These filings are considered ‘Public’ in that it would be possible for third parties to order certified copies of the filed documents.

Third parties, like banks, sometimes request a document that is often referred to as a ‘Certificate of Incumbency’. A voluntary filing that names the directors and officers would generally satisfy such a request.  Documents in the form of powers of attorney, affidavits, meeting minutes or resolutions can also be filed. All filings include a declaration by the corporation, that the information it is submitting is correct on the date of signing. While there is no provision to file an amendment to an existing filing, a corporation can make a new voluntary filing at anytime. A corporation formed before 1977 may first need to amend its Articles to subject itself to the provisions of the Business Corporation Act.

Alternatively, it is possible for a corporation to record information with the Registered Agent, The LISCR Trust Company. Upon filing a Certificate of Recordation is issued. These filings are considered ‘Private’ in that it would not be possible for third parties to obtain the information.