Monaco: a great place for entrepreneurs

Paris Match magazine profiled the Principality in an article on the world’s wealthiest places.

At 8 billion euros, Monaco’s GDP is one of the highest in the world. Monaco has certainly always been a magnet for the wealthiest people. As Paris Match put it, welcoming “these big migratory birds” that “everyone is clamouring for” remains the ideal strategy for guaranteeing its wealth.

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Qatar, Dubai, Hong Kong…: according to the author of an article entitled ‘Monaco : le paradis des entrepreneurs’ (Monaco: the entrepreneurs’ paradise), the Principality ranks up with countries where “anything goes” to lure “increasingly volatile” UHNVIs (ultra high net value individuals). From long-term visas to preferential legal and fiscal systems, the weekly magazine drew up a list of Monaco’s tempting offers to attract new residents as well as “the complete wealth-creating system: companies, investment funds, family offices and qualified employees” they would bring with them. As the article’s author Alexandre Ferret points out, despite its 2 km² surface area, the Principality has a number of assets that enable it to play in the big league.

It’s all about attractiveness

The magazine quoted Frédéric Genta, Monaco’s Interministerial Delegate for Attractiveness and Digital Transition, to back up its point . The “spearhead,” whose mission it is to “blow the dust off the Principality’s image,” Genta is banking on business to “trash the idea that Monaco is a retirement destination.” The weekly magazine explains that finance and insurance activities are the second largest contributors to the Principality’s wealth (17.6% of GDP), accounting for “nearly 4,500 of the more than 60,000 jobs on the Rock.”

According to the article, more and more of the world’s wealthiest people are young. Monaco therefore cannot afford not to offer them a perfect location with “security, an excellent education system, cutting-edge health care, a high-quality cultural scene.” Aspects on which “we are competitive. Our most precious asset remains our reputation, which stems from Monaco being a unique destination: a 700-year old history, strong European values, a zero-debt State and stable institutions,” the Interministerial Delegate continued.

Hemmed in…. or is it?

Almost 40,000 French and 10,000 Italian citizens come to work in the Principality every day. Which makes the Principality “the biggest employer in the Riviera,” as Éric Ciotti, former president of the Alpes-Martimes Departmental Council and current president of the France-Monaco friendship group at the French National Assembly, points out. He believes “we need to bolster this economic partnership. Making the Alpes-Maritimes a free trade zone could help ease the constraint that weighs on the Principality – a lack of space.” And therefore contribute to its influence and attractiveness?