Brunei Country Commercial Guide
Learn about the market conditions, opportunities, regulations, and business conditions in brunei, prepared by at U.S. Embassies worldwide by Commerce Department, State Department and other U.S. agencies’ professionals
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Trade Financing
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Methods of Payment

Brunei’s banking system offers a full range of export finance instruments, including letters of credit and drafts. 

For more information about the methods of payment or other trade finance options, please read the Trade Finance Guide.

This article should also incorporate the information on baking systems, foreign exchange controls and U.S. banks and local correspondent banks. 

Banking Systems

Although small, Brunei’s banking system is reliable and well monitored. The Ministry of Finance and Economy oversees the Department of Financial Services (Treasury) and the Brunei Investment Agency. The Brunei Darussalam Central Bank acts as the monetary authority of Brunei and handles the formulation and implementation of monetary policies, supervision of financial institutions, and currency management. Currently, U.S. companies and citizens encounter significant hurdles to opening bank accounts in Brunei due to the lack of a Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) intergovernmental agreement between both countries. 

Foreign Exchange Controls

Describe how foreign exchange is managed and implications for U.S. businesses. 

There is no restriction on foreign exchange. Banks permit non-resident accounts, and there is no restriction on borrowing by non-residents.

U.S. Banks and Local Correspondent Banks

Brunei has three licensed domestic banks - Bank Islam Brunei Darussalam (BIBD), Baiduri Bank, and TAIB .  Brunei’s banking sector is dominated by BIBD and Baiduri Bank. Foreign banks including Maybank, RHB Bank Berhad, Standard Chartered Bank, Bank of China (Hong Kong) and United Overseas Bank. Due to FATCA requirements, all banks except for Standard Chartered have refused service to U.S. citizens.

To access Brunei’s ICS section on financing, visit the U.S. Department of State Investment Climate Statement website.

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Global Business Navigator Chatbot Beta

Welcome to the Global Business Navigator, an artificial intelligence (AI) Chatbot from the International Trade Administration (ITA). This tool, currently in beta version testing, is designed to provide general information on the exporting process and the resources available to assist new and experienced U.S. exporters. The Chatbot, developed using Microsoft’s Azure AI services, is trained on ITA’s export-related content and aims to quickly get users the information they need. The Chatbot is intended to make the benefits of exporting more accessible by understanding non-expert language, idiomatic expressions, and foreign languages.

Limitations

As a beta product, the Chatbot is currently being tested and its responses may occasionally produce inaccurate or incomplete information. The Chatbot is trained to decline out of scope or inappropriate requests. The Chatbot’s knowledge is limited to the public information on the Export Solutions web pages of Trade.gov, which covers a wide range of topics on exporting. While it cannot provide responses specific to a company’s product or a specific foreign market, its reference pages will guide you to other relevant government resources and market research. Always double-check the Chatbot’s responses using the provided references or by visiting the Export Solutions web pages on Trade.gov. Do not use its responses as legal or professional advice. Inaccurate advice from the Chatbot would not be a defense to violating any export rules or regulations.

Privacy

The Chatbot does not collect information about users and does not use the contents of users’ chat history to learn new information. All feedback is anonymous. Please do not enter personally identifiable information (PII), sensitive, or proprietary information into the Chatbot. Your conversations will not be connected to other interactions or accounts with ITA. Conversations with the Chatbot may be reviewed to help ITA improve the tool and address harmful, illegal, or otherwise inappropriate questions.

Translation

The Chatbot supports a wide range of languages. Because the Chatbot is trained in English and responses are translated, you should verify the translation. For example, the Chatbot may have difficulty with acronyms, abbreviations, and nuances in a language other than English.

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