De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) published new statistics, tables and a dashboard on the Dutch conduit sector, showing a sharp contraction in financial holding companies owned by multinational corporations. The number of such holding companies fell from more than 14,000 in 2017 to just under 8,000 in 2025, alongside a marked decline in their aggregate balance sheet size. The aggregate balance sheet size dropped from 652% of GDP at year-end 2017 to 401% of GDP, or EUR 4,732 billion, at year-end 2025. DNB links the decline partly to measures aimed at curbing tax avoidance through conduit structures, including a withholding tax on interest, royalties and dividend payments to low-tax jurisdictions and the introduction of a 15% global minimum corporate tax rate, while noting a smaller contribution from mergers and business changes. The number of trust offices also halved over the same period, from around 200 in 2017 to just over 100 in 2025. DNB reports that disappeared holding companies had comparatively strong links to low-tax jurisdictions such as the Cayman Islands and Bermuda, and that these defunct firms accounted for well over half of the sector’s liabilities linked to such jurisdictions; despite the contraction, the Netherlands remains a major European hub for conduit financing, second to Luxembourg.
De Nederlandsche Bank 2026-04-23
De Nederlandsche Bank publishes new conduit-sector statistics as multinational-owned holding companies fall from over 14,000 to under 8,000
De Nederlandsche Bank published new statistics and a dashboard showing a sharp contraction in Dutch conduit-sector financial holding companies owned by multinationals, with their number falling from over 14,000 in 2017 to just under 8,000 in 2025 and aggregate balance sheet size declining from 652% to 401% of GDP. DNB attributes the decline mainly to anti-tax-avoidance measures, including withholding taxes on payments to low-tax jurisdictions and the 15% global minimum corporate tax, and notes that the Netherlands remains a major European conduit financing hub, second to Luxembourg.