What an Event: Celebrating the 10th Anniversary of the IMC

The IMC’s 10th Anniversary was truly an event worth attending. With flawless organization and a high-caliber program, it stood out as a milestone gathering for the global investment migration community. A special thank you goes to Bruno L’ecuyer, Chief Executive of the IMC, and his exceptional team for delivering such a top-tier experience.

Thought Leadership in Action

Beyond the formalities, the event brought together industry leaders in meaningful ways. One highlight was the announcement of the IMC AI Due Diligence Initiative—a bold, forward-thinking move. The new partnership with IMGW.news  also brought tangible value, reinforcing IMC’s role as a key driver of innovation and transparency.

Advocate Petar Markov, actively participated in a panel discussion on the evolution of due diligence programs across jurisdictions. During the session, he presented the Bulgaria Golden Visa program, focusing on its strong regulatory framework, pre-investment due diligence process, and its alignment with global compliance expectations.

Practical Impact and Peer Collaboration

The event was more than just presentations. It provided a space for genuine, high-level networking and peer-to-peer learning. In private meetings with clients and partners, we received crucial insights that prompted internal reflection—even for a law firm like ours, which secured AIFM registration in Bulgaria in under seven months.

Promoting the Bulgaria Golden Visa Fund

While Advocate Markov’s team continues to raise awareness about the Bulgaria Golden Visa program—which offers significantly greater benefits compared to other programs like Portugal—the IMC event served as an ideal platform to begin promoting the First Bulgaria Golden Visa Fund. The Bulgaria AIF – Fund AD participated as a Gold Sponsor of the event.

Our efforts are already delivering results. We are now seeing a new applicant to the Bulgaria Golden Visa program nearly every week, and what’s even more encouraging is that our Fund is beginning to attract the attention it deserves.

Expanding Horizons for Private Clients

We also met outstanding professionals we would confidently recommend to our private clients pursuing global residency and citizenship.

P.S. Contrary to some of the rumors circulating, the Portugal Golden Visa is not a scam. Misunderstandings often arise from poor consulting and unrealistic expectations set by advisors. If you’re misinformed about the timeline, it’s easy to feel frustrated. The good news is that the five-year countdown to Portuguese citizenship now begins from the date of investment, not from the date of approval — a key improvement.

By comparison, Bulgaria conducts due diligence before any investment is made, that takes maximum to 2.5 months, adding a valuable layer of security and reassurance for applicants before committing funds.

At the end of the Day

What truly matters at the end of the day is the strength of the team, and it’s even more powerful when that team is family.

Standing With Malta

Finally, we must acknowledge the recent cancellation of Malta’s Citizenship by Investment program. While expected, many in the industry hoped it might endure. Nevertheless, Malta is already restructuring its offering, and we anticipate the launch of a new Golden Visa program, likely based on fund investments, much like the Bulgaria Golden Visa.