CHARLOTTE AMALIE, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands – April 4, 2024 - Wayne L. Biggs Jr., Chief Executive Officer of the Virgin Islands Economic Development Authority (“VIEDA”) denies any claims that Mac Private Equity Inc. or MPE Clearing & Holdings, Inc. are beneficiaries of the Virgin Islands Economic Development Commission’s (“VIEDC”) Tax Incentive Program. VIEDA CEO Biggs’s denial is in response to an article published in the VI Consortium on April 3rd regarding a lawsuit filed in the District Court of the Virgin Islands against Mac Private Equity Inc. for an alleged Ponzi scheme.
The VIEDA administers the VIEDC tax incentive program, also commonly referred to as “EDC”. The EDC program allows reduced taxes for eligible companies to help spur economic development and job creation in the Territory. Companies receive EDC tax incentives only after adhering to an application process, which includes a public hearing and, if successful, culminates with approval of incentives by the EDC governing board.
The VI Consortium, an online newspaper based in the U.S. Virgin Islands, published an article on April 3, 2024 stating, “on the Mac Private Equity Inc.’s website, the fund claims to be ‘a registered Economic Development Company (EDC) operating in the U.S. Virgin Islands,’ which the lawsuit said it achieves through a locally registered entity, MPE Clearing & Holdings, Inc.”
“A statement on the Mac Private Equity Inc. website, as recently as April 3rd, claims that the entity “is pending EDC status in the U.S. Virgin Islands”. That statement is false and misleading. Based on EDC records, neither Mac Private Equity Inc. nor MPE Clearing & Holdings, Inc. has applied for tax incentives and neither has been a beneficiary of the EDC Tax Incentive Program,” said VIEDA CEO Wayne L. Biggs Jr.
The VIEDC Beneficiary Listing referred to in the VI Consortium article is a listing of active businesses approved under the tax incentive program. On the list of active beneficiaries of the VIEDC Tax Incentive Program posted on the VIEDA website, there are currently 82 companies.
For more information, contact the VIEDA at info@usvieda.org.
