Established in 2002 as an international insurance group, Investors Trust has increased both its services and its global reach, with clients using their products to invest in over 100 markets around the world. Always an international entity, the company still has multiple offices that cover a number of countries, so that its widespread client base has offices in a range of time zones to reach out to.
After beginning life in insurance, Investors Trust went on to become a leader in the industry by focusing on, in its words, “flexible solutions, enhanced opportunities, advanced technologies and a world-class customer support.” One of the advantages to its many global offices is that they allow the company to have a more hands-on, culturally aware involvement with the markets and business practices in a number of continents and cultures. This allows the company’s international clients to work with people best equipped to help them navigate the world of investing.
‘Investors Trust’ is a global brand, behind which is the ITA Group of companies. Through this group, Investors Trust achieves its broad global footprint via a combination of companies and subsidiaries. The parent company, ITA International Holdings, is based out of the Cayman Islands and rated A by AM Best. Alongside this operate ITA Asia Limited, a Labuan-licensed company based in Malaysia, and ITA International Insurer, a Puerto Rico based and licensed company. Complimenting these, Investors Trust also has service points or corporate support locations in Dubai, the USA, Hong Kong and Uruguay.
Starting with the smaller operations, ITA’s U.S.A. location is a corporate support office, created to help the group with administrative needs. The office is situated in Miami, known as the “Wall Street of the South” and a financial capital for Latin Americans, with more than 3,000 domestic and international financial companies in Miami-Dade County. This office was founded at the same time as Investors Trust itself, in 2002. Its other (relatively speaking) smaller-scale operations were established much later, all in the form of service points from which to create a corporate presence for ITA in these countries and cultures. In 2008, it opened a service point in Hong Kong and another in Uruguay, and in 2014, added to these with one in Dubai.
Hong Kong was chosen because it is the financial capital in Asia Pacific, making it an ideal location in which to establish oneself and from which to develop business within the region. It is also regarded as one of the areas with the greatest financial freedom in the world, and ranks highly in terms of global banking operations (11th). However, it was its gateway into Asia that had the greatest appeal.
Uruguay stood out to Investors Trust because it has one of the highest literacy rates in Latin America, and benefits from protection under the Free Zone Act, which makes it extremely attractive in terms of international business. ITA’s Uruguay office is in Montevideo, which has a strong location in terms of accessibility within the region.
Established six years later, when international attitudes and unrest had settled regarding the region, ITA finally got its foot in the door of the Middle East with its Dubai location, which is situated within the Dubai International Finance Centre. This finance centre is one of the faster growing in the world, within a vibrant and profitable part of the Middle East. Even more advantageous, Dubai is not only a way to access the Middle East, but is also a location from which to reach Africa and the Indian subcontinent.
Each of these service points open up a world of possibility both for ITA and for those investing through them. However, it is its three main locations where most of the action happens, in the Cayman Islands, Malaysia and Puerto Rico.
The Cayman Islands is an attractive location to investors, as we also discuss in our article on Dart this month. An Overseas Territory of the United Kingdom, the islands’ government has issued a series of laws that make it a highly profitable location for foreign and offshore operations, including exemption from taxation in the Cayman Islands other than stamp duty and import duties. On top of this, the country itself is stable to work in: it is peaceful, has a steady government, reliable infrastructure and, unsurprisingly, a strong economy. It has a thriving tourism industry, and is also the world’s sixth largest international banking centre, and one of the top ten international financial centres in the world. Over 40 of the world’s top 50 banks hold a license within the country, and the total banks in the area represent over 45 countries.
This appeal for investors and businesses made it a logical place for Investors Trust to base its head office, both for its own sake and to work with the many potential clients looking to the area.
In Labuan, Malaysia, ITA runs one of its two major insurance companies, ITA Asia Limited. The company is situated within the Labuan International Business Financial Centre, which is well positioned as a hub for companies within the Southeast Asia region as a whole. Similar to the Cayman Islands or the financial centre in Uruguay, this development has laws in place that make it appealing to work within, following English Common Law and a simple tax structure. It was established in 1990 with an aim to draw in more financial business from abroad. In 2012, ITA also set up an office in Kuala Lumpur, to establish a presence on Malaysia’s other island and better unify their operations there.
Lastly, ITA has its insurance company in Puerto Rico, the Latin American US territory that has many appealing factors for investors and businesses, even though it has suffered as a country since it was devastated by Hurricane Maria in 2017. However, conducting business in US dollars, having a well-regulated free market and unrestrictive laws regarding the use of funds abroad, it is a highly beneficial place to do business. It also offers many tax incentives to international insurers and holding companies.
ITA’s base of operations is broad, and the services it offers are just as varied, despite the company’s expert area of focus. ITA specializes in medium- to long-term unit-linked investment products, but within this category, it offers a wide range of options, all of which are able to be tailored to suit their clients’ needs. As the company says itself, “Investors Trust offers a variety of lump-sum products tailored to meet all risk profiles. Ranging from capital protected fixed income portfolios to alternative investments, you will find an Investors Trust product that fits your needs.”
“We understand that each investor is different. Whether you want to prepare for your retirement, ensure your children’s future, or save for their education, Investors Trust offers a wide range of investment products with a tax effective structure that can be personalized to meet your financial goals.”
This flexibility with its clients and its wide reach across the globe makes Investors Trust an excellent business to turn to for investment advice, support and products. Its firm financial standing, its insight into many essential markets around the world and its ability to work closely with every customer makes it a reliable choice to turn to, and when it comes to the gamble of investments and insurance, reliability is exactly the thing to seek.
