The Offshore Gambit

But what does an offshore business centre (OBC) actually mean, and what does it promise? Over the decades, the financial world has seen the emergence of OBCs at Hong Kong, Singapore, Labuan (Malaysia), Jersey Islands, Cyprus and Mauritius. Most of these centres have been identified by foreign institutions as tax havens and, in some cases, as integrated financial service centres.

Udayan Bose, CEO of Lazard Credit Capital, has put up a proposal to Jyoti Basu, the chief minister of West Bengal. In a letter written in February this year, Bose has requested the government to back the plan by providing the basic facilities required to set up the project.

While the West Bengal government is yet to take a view on the issue, it has been suggested that Mumbai city is too congested for new financial activity. There is no dearth of financial talent in Calcutta. The real estate prices there are much lower than in Mumbai, and the infrastructure too has improved considerably, argues a forex dealer.

Merchant bankers agree that a major advantage is Calcutta's proximity to the East Asian markets of Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia. This will fall in line with the new