... da sollen also kundengelder über einen "collection agent" auf jamaica eingesammelt werden, um dann via eine "colorado-bank" ausserhalb der usa angelegt zu werden...


... interessante struktur 8-)


allerdings: nix für mix!


viel glück... falls sie's wagen möchten 8-)


ffbkdavid@creatrustconsult.com


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William Massias' firm Capital Solutions Limited (CSL) has partnered with a three-year-old private American bank to offer off-shore banking services to investors wanting tax havens for their funds, starting January.

CSL, which does not have a banking licence, in essence will act as a collection agent for Colorado-based American International Depository and Trust (AIDT), which under Colorado law is allowed to offer offshore accounts to foreigners.

"We are adding our banking gateway," said Massias at a cocktail function in Kingston announcing the new service.

"The service will go through Capital Solutions as an investment."

AIDT founder and chairman Jerry James says clients interested in offshore accounts may start with a minimum deposit of US$200,000 ($13.4 million) or collateral of equivalent value.

James, a strong lobbyist for the offshore investment sector and president of the Offshore Institute - headquartered in the Isle of Man and said to have members in 58 countries - authored a paper in August titled 'The Importance of the U.S. as a tax haven and asset protection jurisdiction', arguing that if the United States were to build out its offshore sector, it could offset some of the US$5.6 trillion of American funds that flowed to other offshore jurisdictions over past years.

The paper was published in the International Financial Centres Yearbook 2006/07.

Typically, offshore centres are characterised by high privacy, low or no tax, easy access to funds, and less stringent regulatory and disclosure rules. Accounts may or may not be numbered, or even identified with the account holder.

Jamaica does not offer offshore banking, which is estimated worldwide as a US$6 trillion industry.

Financial and banking regulators here were reluctant to give direct comment on Massias' addition to his business mix. The Bank of Jamaica's legal department referred the Financial Gleaner to Section 3 of the Financial Institutions Act which prohibits AIDT and Capital Solutions from advertising the service within Jamaica, unless they are licensed by the central bank as deposit taking institutions.

The Financial Services Commission, which licences investment agencies and securities traders, is yet to respond to queries on whether Capital Solution is within the terms of its licence.

James, in a Financial Gleaner interview, said for the business to be brokered by CSL, the clients could stipulate how and where they want their funds invested.

"In terms of wealth, we try to find the best investment opportunities around the world, to make your life successful financially," said James in a Financial Gleaner interview.

"We can open an account or start a relationship. We take collateral of any kind Ñ a horse, a piece of fine art Ñ (but) we prefer that it be a financial asset."

AIDT operates under the five-year-old Colorado Foreign Capital Depository Act signed into law June 1, 2001, said James, saying so far his was the only bank in the state offering offshore banking to non US residents.

Other services of the bank, whose assets James did not divulge, include private banking and trust services to affluent international families. Clients opting for offshore accounts are assigned pseudo names to protect their identities.

Foreign judgements seeking account disclosure, he told the Financial Gleaner, are not easily recognised in Colorado.

To succeed, the party bringing legal action against clients whose assets are held in AIDT in Colorado must file the case in the state.

Colorado laws also prohibit the hiring of counsel on a contingency fee basis, meaning that the plaintiff bringing legal action against the client's assets cannot hire a counsel or lawyer on the basis that the counsel will claim a percentage of the client's assets based on the outcome of the case.

It is estimated that some US$1.5 trillion of offshore funds represent illicit money, prompting crackdowns on such jurisdictions by the multilaterals in the post September 11, 2001 anti-terrorism binge started by terror victim United States and endorsed by its OECD partners.

Said James, when asked how AIDT safeguarded against money laundering: "If you don't know your customers, you're at risk. We're totally compliant with bank secrecy and the Patriot Act," he added.

Massias, meantime, is projecting a 35-40 per cent boost in his business from the offshore banking service, suggesting that he sees a big market in Jamaica.

Capital Solutions, he said, would also be launching a cheque clearing system next year to reduce the one-month turnaround time it takes for US dollar drafts to clear to one week.