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As governments in many countries have undermined their own privacy laws, people are searching to find privacy and security for their information, both personal and corporate. While this protection is currently the popular topic in both corporate and private sectors, the trust structures of many countries have either been weakened or dramatically changed. In light of these invasions of privacy, offshore banking has become the better option in many countries and the best country for both offshore banking and asset protection is Panama.

Why is Panama the Best Location for Asset Protection?

Panama is currently the second largest banking center, behind Switzerland, and is also the number one retirement haven in the world. Panama does not tax offshore derived income, capital gains, etc. Tax violations in Panama are civil offenses, none are criminal and Panama has no tax treaties with any country which means that tax problems in other countries cannot be pursued in Panama. Panama City attorneys are actually required to form all corporations; in turn, the attorney / client privilege protects the privacy of over 400,000 corporations here. Panama has enacted numerous laws to secure privacy, bank secrecy and protection.

The Bank System in Panama is Big, But Is Panama Banking Safe?

Panama City claims to have 150 international banks which speaks well of their strong bank secrecy laws. The banks commonly have online banking including the ability to send international wire transfers. With a Panama City attorney, it is not necessary to go to Panama to open a bank account; all that is needed is to supply reference letters and passport copies. It is even reasonable to get up to 7% interest on 5 year deposits. The national currency in Panama is the US dollar so currency issues rarely occur.

What is a Panama Anonymous Bearer Share Corporation?

This is an anonymous corporation which has no registry or database of corporate owners. This means that owners are only identified by paper stock shares and almost completely anonymous. There is no tax on offshore derived income and wire transfers are not associated with natural people for additional security. Such a corporation becomes important when used in conjunction with a Panama Foundation, the vehicle which drives the entire Panamanian identity protection plan.

What is a Panama Foundation?

A Panama foundation has a number of advantages. It is like a combination of a corporation, a trust and a will. Foundations can be started by a Panama City attorney and have no real owner. The Panama foundation is anonymous. The foundation instructions are kept secret and its assets, including bank accounts are generally non-freezable. Foundations cannot conduct business, but they can own corporations and real estate which are used for business purposes. When used with the Panama Anonymous Bearer Share Corporation, this becomes a powerful tool for conducting business privately

More and more people are seeking identity protection, both personally and corporately. Panama banking has become the second largest banking center in the world and possesses perhaps the best secrecy laws. In Panama, it is possible both for a person to privately protect his assets in a corporation without anyone knowing the owner and for a corporation to hold and protect the assets of an individual without anyone being able to ascertain their identities. When combined with a Panama Anonymous Bearer Share Corporation, this high level of asset protection makes offshore Panamanian Foundations a great option for people in many other countries.

The Republic of Panama has taken an active role in protecting Panamanian currency from money laundering and funding of international terrorism. Panamanian banks lead the world in the combination of security and size of market and are especially valued for Panama real estate financing.