Question How to collect payments from risk countries?

[2fire]

We are Swiss based company, which producing medical products. Our products are not restricted by any sanctions and can be exported globally including heavily sanctioned countries.

We have bank accounts in Switzerland / UK / EU which are perfectly working for EU / UAE and plenty of others “normal” countries.

Problem:
Even bank stating that they working with some “risk” countries, payments in EUR constantly bounced or blocked for months in intermediaries banks. For example from such countries like Palestine, Jordan, Mozambique, Morocco, Iraq, Cambodia. I even not talking about Russia, Syria, Iran, Afghanistan.

What we currently do to collect payments:
For “risk” countries we use our subsidiary in UAE and invoicing clients in AED, which not very welcomed by our clients but works smoothly for incoming payments from MENA.

Why I do not like it:
Working via subsidiary requires extra expenses and not convenient.

What I want:
I am looking for a legit solutions to collect payment for our goods from “risk” and “high risked” list countries.

What I am thinking to do:
Solution 1. I am thinking to rent several warehouses across the globe in free customs zones for faster delivery of goods + offshore bank account for receivables.

Or

Solution 2. To open local subsidiary which will perform such activities like warehousing & processing payments (collecting payments for sold goods and forwarding them to Swiss company, like collecting various companies for food delivery and then transferring money to restaurants).

What is your opinion about above mentioned problems and possible solutions?

 

[AZERTYLO]

There are means of South African payments that can very well sanctioned countries

 

[Alexmorgan]

Use UAE its not in red zone for nothing

Open a branch of your company in freezone in UAE and recive the payment through it then to your swiss account

No taxes and no fees and you can open a warehohse there 2

 

[2fire]

Use UAE its not in red zone for nothing

Open a branch of your company in freezone in UAE and recive the payment through it then to your swiss account

No taxes and no fees and you can open a warehohse there 2

Dear Alexmorgan,
Thank you for your opinion.

What is worrying me about Swiss company’s branch is that Swiss company would be fully liable for branch.

Let’s say someone decided to attack Swiss company and they figured out to place 1M EUR fine on this branch, then I wouldn’t be able to protect business in Swiss court and I don’t believe in fair court for FZ.

In FZ I am thinking to have UAE mainland subsidiary’s branch for warehousing & payment processing (if permissible by law and accepted by banks)
or
warehousing & offshore bank accounts for Swiss entity.

There are means of South African payments that can very well sanctioned countries

Dear Azertylo,

Thank you for your comment.
Do you think they would open bank account for Swiss company?

 

[jafo]

We are Swiss based company, which producing medical products. Our products are not restricted by any sanctions and can be exported globally including heavily sanctioned countries.

We have bank accounts in Switzerland / UK / EU which are perfectly working for EU / UAE and plenty of others “normal” countries.

Problem:
Even bank stating that they working with some “risk” countries, payments in EUR constantly bounced or blocked for months in intermediaries banks. For example from such countries like Palestine, Jordan, Mozambique, Morocco, Iraq, Cambodia. I even not talking about Russia, Syria, Iran, Afghanistan.

What we currently do to collect payments:
For “risk” countries we use our subsidiary in UAE and invoicing clients in AED, which not very welcomed by our clients but works smoothly for incoming payments from MENA.

Why I do not like it:
Working via subsidiary requires extra expenses and not convenient.

What I want:
I am looking for a legit solutions to collect payment for our goods from “risk” and “high risked” list countries.

What I am thinking to do:
Solution 1. I am thinking to rent several warehouses across the globe in free customs zones for faster delivery of goods + offshore bank account for receivables.

Or

Solution 2. To open local subsidiary which will perform such activities like warehousing & processing payments (collecting payments for sold goods and forwarding them to Swiss company, like collecting various companies for food delivery and then transferring money to restaurants).

What is your opinion about above mentioned problems and possible solutions?

Grüezi!

I'm Swiss-based too (in Zug!) I sell to all the countries you just mentioned. I solved this a few years ago by having them pay me in USDT and I cash them in or forward part of it to my façonnier in other countries.

It's extremely simple.

FREUNDLICHE GRÜSSE

 

[JohnLocke]

You may use crypto payments for such countries. Everyone knows that the countries you are mentioning are only trouble.

 

[Forester]

Use UAE its not in red zone for nothing

Open a branch of your company in freezone in UAE and recive the payment through it then to your swiss account

@2fire already has a UAE subsidiary

No taxes

It's not true anymore, unfortunately (except just for some cases). (But 9% is not so bad.)

and no fees

Sorry but it was never true.

and you can open a warehohse there 2

True.

What is worrying me about Swiss company’s branch is that Swiss company would be fully liable for branch.

Let’s say someone decided to attack Swiss company and they figured out to place 1M EUR fine on this branch, then I wouldn’t be able to protect business in Swiss court and I don’t believe in fair court for FZ.

Well, understandable. Honestly, I am unable to give any opinion re: FZ companies and courts as I am lacking the information. But @Fred here would be competent, I guess.

warehousing & offshore bank accounts for Swiss entity.

I am afraid that offshore banking in UAE will not work. There is enough of obstacles for local companies...

There are means of South African payments that can very well sanctioned countries

Do you think they would open bank account for Swiss company?

If you try e.g. Standard Bank, you can have a luck. But I would consider perhaps better solution – choose one African country that you have business operations in, try to find e. g. Standard Bank (or some other bank that is present across the Africa) there, open an account with them (it should be somehow possible as you have a business presence) and then try to open an account with the same bank in some non-problematic but tolerant country (might be South African Republic). I guess that payments from the country of operations to the non-problematic country can work, as it is transferring money between the accounts in the same name with the same bank; and then transfers to CH, too.

Generally:

We are Swiss based company, which producing medical products. Our products are not restricted by any sanctions and can be exported globally including heavily sanctioned countries.

We have bank accounts in Switzerland / UK / EU which are perfectly working for EU / UAE and plenty of others “normal” countries.

OK

Problem:
Even bank stating that they working with some “risk” countries, payments in EUR constantly bounced or blocked for months in intermediaries banks.
For example from such countries like Palestine, Jordan, Mozambique, Morocco, Iraq, Cambodia. I even not talking about Russia, Syria, Iran, Afghanistan.

You have probably some reasons for using EUR; but I would be afraid that it wo'nt work well. EUR is not a good currency for transacting with problematic regions. Altough USD is generally far from being good for anything, for this purpose it can work much better, IMO. And even better is to use e.g. RMB.

What we currently do to collect payments:
For “risk” countries we use our subsidiary in UAE and invoicing clients in AED, which not very welcomed by our clients but works smoothly for incoming payments from MENA.

Why I do not like it:
Working via subsidiary requires extra expenses and not convenient.

OK, understandable.

What I want:
I am looking for a legit solutions to collect payment for our goods from “risk” and “high risked” list countries.

What I am thinking to do:
Solution 1. I am thinking to rent several warehouses across the globe in free customs zones for faster delivery of goods + offshore bank account for receivables.

It might work, IMO – if the zones/jurisdictions are choosen properly. (But as I am not well oriented re: freezones, I can't advise.)

Solution 2. To open local subsidiary which will perform such activities like warehousing & processing payments (collecting payments for sold goods and forwarding them to Swiss company, like collecting various companies for food delivery and then transferring money to restaurants).

Sorry – but what is the difference of this from your UAE solution that you do not like?
That running the subsidiary especially in UAE is costly and not convenient – and you are searching just for another jurisdiction? In such a case, I guess that probably there is not a universal jurisdiction for all the countries you mentioned; but per partes it is solvable... but let's wait for your input

And yes, as @jafo and @JohnLocke pointed at – I also think that using crypto is an option.