About Trust Companies

"Labuan Trust company" means a person licensed to carry on trust company business under section 61 and 71 of the Labuan Financial Services and Securities Act, 2010.

Section 6 states that a person incorporated or registered under the Labuan Companies Act 1990 (LCA) may apply to the Authority for a license to carry on trust company business in Labuan.

Under Section 71 a person incorporated or registered under the LCA may also apply to be registered as a managed trust company. Labuan managed trust company means a person carrying on trust company business where such business is managed by another Labuan trust company. Besides companies established under the LCA, a registered trust company in other jurisdiciton is eligible to register as a managed trust company in Labuan.

"trust company business" means:

establishing or using a share transfer office or share registration office;
administering, managing or otherwise dealing with property as an agent, legal personal representative or trustee, whether by servant or agent or otherwise;
maintaining an agent for the purpose of soliciting or procuring business, whether or not the agent is continuously resident in Labuan;
maintaining an office, agency or branch, whether or not that office, agency or branch is also used for any purpose by another entity;
the provision of:

management and accounting services to; or
directors, secretaries and registered offices for, Labuan companies incorporated or registered under the LCA and foreign Labuan companies registered under that Act;
incorporating or registering companies under the LCA and generally acting as a lodging agent for any document required to be lodged by a company or person under that Act; and
providing such other services as may be approved by the Authority from time to time, to or on behalf or any person;

Other activities that a trust company may carry out include as a trustee, agent, executor or administrator pursuant to the objects of the trust company.

It is a requirement under the LCA that a Labuan company must employ the services of a trust company, to provide trust company services to the Labuan companies. The trust company acts as the agent for incorporating or registering companies under the LCA and provides the registered office, Resident Secretary and performs the secretarial duties of the Labuan company, such as lodgment of any documents required under the LCA. The trust company may also provide management and accounting services to the Labuan companies and make available any of its trust officers for appointment as Resident Director.

For a managed trust company, the requirement to establish its own physical office is not applicable, but it must appoint a manager and at least two trust officers in Labuan, who can be the employees of the appointed manager.

With regards to physical presence, a trust company shall establish a functional office in Labuan and have at least two approved trust officers domiciled in Labuan. The trust officers are employees of the trust company who have been approved by the Authority as trust officers.