Singapore is a country that thrives largely due to international trade and foreign investments. It does not, however, possess natural resources. Nonetheless, due to its open economy, it has progressed economically: Ranked first worldwide for the ease of doing business by the World Bank for 2014, consecutively for 9 years.
The tax imposed on the income derived by the companies are kept low, at a 17%, to encourage new investments and maintain a conducive business environment. The Start-up exemption scheme was also implemented to provide some exemption on the taxable profit of the newly-incorporated companies for the first three years.