Disadvantages of Offshore Banking

The Pros and Cons of Offshore Banking

There are numerous benefits to offshore banking: tax, privacy, security, asset protection. On the flip side, there are a couple of issues to be considered before embarking on the process of banking offshore. As implied by their name, Offshore Banking Institutions are frequently located in smaller offshore financial centres within remote regions. Although this is not always the case – the Channel Islands are a short hop from mainland Britain or Europe, as are the Isle of Man, Switzerland and Luxembourg, for instance - but it is often perceived to be the case. Whilst this may give a certain amount of hesitation and trepidation to a potential account holder, with a systematic and careful approach to the selection of the jurisdiction and Overseas Bank located therein, this is a moot point. With the technology surpassing old-fashioned banking methods, depositing, handling, transacting and investing money are all seamless, easy transactions with a good deal of bank account security. The physical location of the offshore bank is almost irrelevant. Irrespective of whether the overseas bank is in Belize or Mauritius, the majority of transactions are a mere mouse-click away. Additionally, with the widespread acceptance of debit and bank-backed credit cards, offshore banking account funds are available at literally tens of thousands of cash machines worldwide.

Furthermore, if the correct advice has been given by the offshore financial services agent who is assisting the potential client, the depositor will have been steered to the Offshore Bank that offers the appropriate balance of security, offshore asset protection and confidentiality to best suit that individual’s requirements.

The common perception of offshore banking is that it is the province of terribly affluent individuals and multi-national companies because of the mistaken assumption that these OFC’s are only interested in 6 and 7 figure deposits or transactions. This is completely untrue. Whilst there are certainly offshore jurisdictions that cater for those interested in safeguarding substantial assets and estates (for example, Switzerland and Luxembourg), there are also those offshore financial centres that have much lower depository requirements and which can prove extremely valuable to those with more modest assets. In truth, there are even a few jurisdictions with minimum deposit requirements of only £250, although it would be questionable as to whether establishing Offshore Bank Accounts for amounts of this size would conceivably make for more effort than the value they provide.

Telephone one of our offshore banking consultants to discuss your financial requirements in complete confidentiality and find out why you should bank offshore.