Yiannos Trisokkas has appeared on the Vietnamese broadcast network Financial & Business News Channel to discuss the investment migration options available to non-European individuals interested in the island of Cyprus.
Q: In 2013, you are affected by the European financial crisis. So how is the country are getting recovered so far?
YT: What really affected us it was the crisis that affected Greece. At the beginning the economy started slowing down. When UK was hit in 2008, then the Cyprus economy was doing quite well because what [of] Cyprus tourism was doing well but after 2013 when Greece had the financial problems due to the connection we had in the banking industry it really affected us.
Q: In terms of investment opportunity, what kind of illustrates that you attract foreign investors?
YT: We have very good industries like shipping. The shipping industry is very good in Cyprus. Cyprus has the third biggest fleet in Europe and the tenth largest lead in the world. We have good agriculture, a very good financial sector and tourism sector. It’s been a touristic destination for more than 40 years.
Q: How about the Cyprus businesses? Do you see them having interest in Vietnam’s economy or any kind of business exchange or are they coming here to explore business opportunity?
YT: As far as I know, there is a pharmaceutical company already that has done it. Yes there are. There is interest. I believe there are opportunities for Cypriots to come here in Vietnam and invest in different sectors mainly in tourism, agriculture, and food products.
Q: For an investor who would like to learn more about the country and improve their knowledge of the investment, what should they do?
YT: What we recommend to clients is to visit us. It’s one thing to read online and it’s another thing to see the actual country. There has not been so much close relationship in business between the two countries, so what we encourage people is to take some of your time. It’s a beautiful country to visit. It is a good experience and it will be great to allow two to three days to explore the island. The island is not big, so in two or three days you can see most of it and this will open up the opportunities, the vision towards the opportunities.
