The future of the offshore services industry?

[forbidd3nknowl3dg3]

Hey all:

I've been wondering lately about the future of the offshore services industry. I've read opinions on both sides. Some say that offshore services is a dying industry by virtue of CRS, FATCA, BEPS, AML, etc. Others counter this viewpoint by pointing out that offshore services is not solely about hiding assets from governments. This side claims that people who argue that the offshore services industry is dying out never truly understood what the industry was all about to begin with.

I'd like to know what everyone's opinion on this matter is. I personally am a junior lawyer who is looking to become an entrepreneur in the offshore space, so I am very much concerned about the possibility that offshore services is 'dying out.' My own view (which is tempered by the fact that I am mostly a researcher in the space and am not experienced as of yet) is that, while reform measures (CRS, FATCA, BEPS, AML, etc) have seriously impacted the offshore space for practicing professionals, other areas remain in which solid business can be conducted. In this regard I have in mind areas like asset protection.

Thoughts everyone?

 

[JohnnyDoe]

The “offshore industry” as we know it from 10-15 years ago no longer exists. Which is a good thing as all the wannabe “experts” are being wiped off the market. They are part of the reason for the industry to have died.

There is still space for good qualified lawyers to assist clients in matters that include some elements of the old “offshore industry”.
You could make a good career within a law firm specializing in asset protection and corporate matters, and you might eventually start your own practice by moving the clients portfolio acquired over the time.

 

[forbidd3nknowl3dg3]

The “offshore industry” as we know it from 10-15 years ago no longer exists. Which is a good thing as all the wannabe “experts” are being wiped off the market. They are part of the reason for the industry to have died.

There is still space for good qualified lawyers to assist clients in matters that include some elements of the old “offshore industry”.
You could make a good career within a law firm specializing in asset protection and corporate matters, and you might eventually start your own practice by moving the clients portfolio acquired over the time.

Thanks Johnny! Would you say that the reason for this decline is CRS/FATCA? What other factors have played a role, in your opinion?

Excited to hear from other posters on where the offshore service industry is headed, both negative and positive.

 

[Simon4466]

More reporting = more time written on clients = only high value clients and high value service providers will remain.

Simple as .

 

[forbidd3nknowl3dg3]

More reporting = more time written on clients = only high value clients and high value service providers will remain.

Simple as .

Thanks Simon

 

[JohnnyDoe]

Thanks Johnny! Would you say that the reason for this decline is CRS/FATCA? What other factors have played a role, in your opinion?

Journalists, Uncle Sam, idiotic bankers and amateurish service providers.

 

[forbidd3nknowl3dg3]

More reporting = more time written on clients = only high value clients and high value service providers will remain.

Simple as .

What exactly do you mean by a high value service provider? Can you elaborate on this distinction a little bit.

 

[MiddleEuroAsia]

What other factors have played a role, in your opinion?

The human element is the most dangerous thing in the offshore world, and i'm saying this as a person whose 80% of his businesses involve dealing with humans in different positions.

This element that was (and still is) moved by greed which resulted in leaks that brought unwanted attention from virtue signalling marxists, socialists, communists who cried about the evil rich people who wanted to destroy the world, and yeah, you know how the story goes from here.

add to that, the lack of any kind OPSEC and basic Encryption tools in big/famous law firms that deal with a lot of confidential matters.
Man, these stupid f*****s can't just follow basic OPSEC. all they have to do is compartalizing different data to different groups each with it's own secure system. and try to minimize human access to confidential data as much as possible.
But no, silly me, how could they do that, when they can just hire the 59 years old betty who is woking on a computer that's running windows 95 or XP and recieve $8/h and call it a day.

Regulation is coming for EU offshore service providers and it will only get harder from here on. So, the ones who will survive are the ones who are able to adapt to any situation swiftly and can give their all to their clients and solve any problem that may arise with them in a timely manner, the people who can't do that are pure trash in my eyes.

 

[Simon4466]

What exactly do you mean by a high value service provider? Can you elaborate on this distinction a little bit.

Sure. This means (a combination of) the following in my opinion:
- More in-house services (e.g. a corporate services provider having their own banking/EMI/crypto licenses).
- More in-house experts, so less 1-3 man providers, and more which can help with things such as accounting/auditing, (tax) compliance and filing next to providing the basic incorporation / domiciliation services.
- Well trained (often multilingual) staff who can work together with ones (tax) advisor to set-up a structure from start to finish, and maintain this with minimal interruptions (so basically, just good service).
- One that is able to provide actual substance to ones firm. This (depending on the jurisdiction) might consist out of quite a bit more than just having a virtual office with a fax/telephone number.

I do not believe that there will be much of a market left for the $500.- Belize IBC incorporation providers for instance.

 

[forbidd3nknowl3dg3]

The human element is the most dangerous thing in the offshore world, and i'm saying this as a person whose 80% of his businesses involve dealing with humans in different positions.

This element that was (and still is) moved by greed which resulted in leaks that brought unwanted attention from virtue signalling marxists, socialists, communists who cried about the evil rich people who wanted to destroy the world, and yeah, you know how the story goes from here.

add to that, the lack of any kind OPSEC and basic Encryption tools in big/famous law firms that deal with a lot of confidential matters.
Man, these stupid f*****s can't just follow basic OPSEC. all they have to do is compartalizing different data to different groups each with it's own secure system. and try to minimize human access to confidential data as much as possible.
But no, silly me, how could they do that, when they can just hire the 59 years old betty who is woking on a computer that's running windows 95 or XP and recieve $8/h and call it a day.

Regulation is coming for EU offshore service providers and it will only get harder from here on. So, the ones who will survive are the ones who are able to adapt to any situation swiftly and can give their all to their clients and solve any problem that may arise with them in a timely manner, the people who can't do that are pure trash in my eyes.

Sure. This means (a combination of) the following in my opinion:
- More in-house services (e.g. a corporate services provider having their own banking/EMI/crypto licenses).
- More in-house experts, so less 1-3 man providers, and more which can help with things such as accounting/auditing, (tax) compliance and filing next to providing the basic incorporation / domiciliation services.
- Well trained (often multilingual) staff who can work together with ones (tax) advisor to set-up a structure from start to finish, and maintain this with minimal interruptions (so basically, just good service).
- One that is able to provide actual substance to ones firm. This (depending on the jurisdiction) might consist out of quite a bit more than just having a virtual office with a fax/telephone number.

I do not believe that there will be much of a market left for the $500.- Belize IBC incorporation providers for instance.

Thanks for the input guys! Both comments are extremely valuable!

Opposite to the declining market for $500 simple incorporation providers, do you see any growth opportunities?

A lot of my interest revolves around asset protection planning. How do you see the market for these services going forward?

Thanks again for the responses. Very much appreciated!

 

[forbidd3nknowl3dg3]

Anyone else willing to comment on the state of the offshore services industry?