Labuan, the Malaysian island off the coast of Borneo, has rebranded the Labuan International Offshore Financial Centre as the Labuan International Business and Financial Centre as part of a strategy to attract more foreign direct investments. Currently, there are more than 6,000 international companies registered in Labuan, including 900 that are Malaysian-owned and more than 300 financial institutions. The island is host to 56 banks, 131 insurance and insurance-related companies, 99 leasing and 21 trust companies. The Labuan Offshore Financial Services Authority anticipates a 10 per cent increase in the number of offshore companies registered on the island this year, boosted by its re-branding strategy, said its director-general Datuk Azizan Abdul Rahman. Moving forward, Azizan said a number of programmes would be initiated, including measures aimed at securing the “gold standard for holding company jurisdiction”, the expansion of captive insurance and private equity, as well as the promotion of shariah-compliant trust and foundation to complement the Islamic financial products and services available in Kuala Lumpur. “One of the main things we are doing now is aggressively reviewing the legal framework to enhance Labuan’s competitiveness as an international offshore financial hub,” said Mr Azizan. He added that LOFSA had appointed legal consultants to conduct benchmarking studies against other offshore centres. Mr Azizan also said the option for Labuan offshore companies to be elected under the Malaysian Income Tax Act 1967 or the Labuan Offshore Business Activity Tax Act 1990 would also enable businesses to structure their transactions more efficiently.