Offshore Banking Secrecy, do you know what it means?

[nastathin]

The title says it, what exactly does it mean if a offshore bank has a Banking Secrecy in place?


Does all banks located offshore have this or only a few named?

 

[redeye]

Only a few countries offer Banking Secrecy so Uruguay, Cyprus, Seychelles and a few more..


Bank and corporate secrecy laws typically impose civil and criminal penalties for unauthorised disclosure of confidential information, including information on the beneficial ownership and control of corporate vehicles. These laws diminish the capacity of authorities to obtain and share beneficial ownership and control information when they do not provide mechanisms for domestic and international authorities fulfilling their regulatory/supervisory or law enforcement functions to access records (including those required to be maintained under the company law and other related laws) and persons who can identify the beneficial owners and controllers of corporate vehicles.


Individuals and corporate vehicles have legitimate expectations of privacy and business confidentiality in their affaris. Corporate entities, in particular, have a valid right not to have their affairs disclosed to competitors, customers, and supliers, among others. Furthermore, privacy is an important matter for certain classes of individuals, particularly those with significant net worth or who occupy high profile positions, who are vulnerable to extortion and kidnapping. Nonetheless, the need to protect legitimate privacy interests does not justify denying authorities access to relevant information when illicit activity is suspected.


In some countries, strict secrecy laws deny authorities access to information on a person or legal entity unless the affected person gives its consent. In the Cook Islands, for example, corporate records can be examined in the Companies Office Registry only if the corporation gives its consent.


The strict secrecy laws in some jurisdictions restrict the authorities access to information even when illicit activity is suspected. In Nauru, for example, secrecy laws prohibit the inspection of holding corporation records for regulatory and enforcement purposes. In addition, jurisdictions with strict secrecy laws may also proscribe the sharing of information among domestic as well as international authorities.


Even where secrecy protection may be lifted under certain circumstances, the potential delays stemming from having to comply with the requisite procedures may impede investigations (inability to obtain information and records, lapse of statutes of limitations, etc.) and allow the perpetrators to move their assets to a different jurisdiction. Furthermore, bank secrecy is often lifted only in the event of a criminal investigation, thereby providing access to information to criminal law enforcement officials but not to regulatory authorities performing regulatory / supervisory or law enforcement functions.


I do hope the above helps you a little to understand the banking secrecy some banks have in place

 

[nastathin]

Your are good into whatever you are into Redeye

 

[brianK]

Only a few countries offer Banking Secrecy so Uruguay, Cyprus, Seychelles and a few more..
Bank and corporate secrecy laws typically impose civil and criminal penalties for unauthorised disclosure of confidential information, including information on the beneficial ownership and control of corporate vehicles. These laws diminish the capacity of authorities to obtain and share beneficial ownership and control information when they do not provide mechanisms for domestic and international authorities fulfilling their regulatory/supervisory or law enforcement functions to access records (including those required to be maintained under the company law and other related laws) and persons who can identify the beneficial owners and controllers of corporate vehicles.


Individuals and corporate vehicles have legitimate expectations of privacy and business confidentiality in their affaris. Corporate entities, in particular, have a valid right not to have their affairs disclosed to competitors, customers, and supliers, among others. Furthermore, privacy is an important matter for certain classes of individuals, particularly those with significant net worth or who occupy high profile positions, who are vulnerable to extortion and kidnapping. Nonetheless, the need to protect legitimate privacy interests does not justify denying authorities access to relevant information when illicit activity is suspected.


In some countries, strict secrecy laws deny authorities access to information on a person or legal entity unless the affected person gives its consent. In the Cook Islands, for example, corporate records can be examined in the Companies Office Registry only if the corporation gives its consent.


The strict secrecy laws in some jurisdictions restrict the authorities access to information even when illicit activity is suspected. In Nauru, for example, secrecy laws prohibit the inspection of holding corporation records for regulatory and enforcement purposes. In addition, jurisdictions with strict secrecy laws may also proscribe the sharing of information among domestic as well as international authorities.


Even where secrecy protection may be lifted under certain circumstances, the potential delays stemming from having to comply with the requisite procedures may impede investigations (inability to obtain information and records, lapse of statutes of limitations, etc.) and allow the perpetrators to move their assets to a different jurisdiction. Furthermore, bank secrecy is often lifted only in the event of a criminal investigation, thereby providing access to information to criminal law enforcement officials but not to regulatory authorities performing regulatory / supervisory or law enforcement functions.


I do hope the above helps you a little to understand the banking secrecy some banks have in place

Sorry to re open this old thread, but I need to know if you have experience to open a bank account for instant in Uruguay or similar places like Paraguya and so forth?

 

[redeye]

Yes I had a bank account with a bank in Uruguay however, I didn't used it because of several reasons.. The bank was OK no problem but to complicated to use it. It was total anonymous since I had some firm to manage the account so my name didn't appear anywhere.

 

[negon]

What do you mean by complicated to use?