For many individuals and businesses, offshore banking is the ideal way to diversify assets and protect wealth. Whether you’re safeguarding assets for future generations, saving for retirement, or starting an international business, offshore banking can be the right choice.
Offshore banking varies from one jurisdiction to the next, and not all services are right for everyone. Staying ahead of trends in offshore banking can help you decide what is right for you.
Here are seven of the biggest trends in offshore banking today.
1. Fintech Improvements
Fintech, or financial technology, is improving at a staggeringly quick pace. Improved fintech will have an impact on all types of banking, and that absolutely includes banks offshore. Most notably, offshore banks are making great strides to improve their online banking capabilities.
In decades past, some offshore bank account holders established accounts and then made minimal movements with their assets. Today, however, it is easier than ever before to take total control over your holdings, and that is true whether your bank is right in your neighborhood or halfway across the world.
As long as you have access to your smartphone and an internet connection, you can transfer money, pay bills, and check the balance of your offshore accounts. Online offshore banking is safe and user-friendly.
2. Emphasis on Asset Protection
There are many, many different reasons to bank offshore. For a long time, however, reducing taxation was a major goal. That is still absolutely a priority for many, and offshore banking in destinations like Belize makes that possible. However, there is also a growing emphasis on a different financial priority: Asset protection.
People from across the globe are becoming more concerned about protecting and preserving their assets. There is lots of litigation in the United States and increasingly around the rest of the world. As a result, and because of economic instability, people just want to ensure that their hard-earned assets are protected.
Many of the people who recently began exploring offshore banking options are primarily looking for a way to get peace of mind about their assets.
3. ECommerce Moving to Offshore Banks
Roughly 25 percent of the world’s population shops online. In fact, eCommerce is now responsible for almost 14 percent of all global retail sales. This is a trend that is expected to grow, and it may have a considerable impact on the popularity of offshore banking.
With eCommerce, there is no need to be tied to a specific location. In fact, you can operate an eCommerce business from anywhere. Knowing that, it makes sense to have business bank accounts that are located in the ideal location for corporate privacy, maximum financial protection, and greater banking privacy.
Thanks to legislation offering perks to International Business Companies (IBCs), offshore banking in Belize is especially popular for thriving eCommerce businesses.
4. All Eyes on Blockchain
Over the past few years, there has been a growing focus on cryptocurrencies. Although major players like Bitcoin are not necessarily the strong currencies that some hoped, there is no question that the technology behind Bitcoin is going to have an impact on offshore banking.
Blockchain technology is what makes cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin function properly. Data about the currency is available publicly, but it is also protected and encrypted. This technology is already working its way into modern financial practice, and it will very likely have an impact on the way offshore banks of the future operate.
Keep your eyes and ears open for mentions of blockchain technology in the years to come.
5. Changing Tax Rates and Structures
Offshore banking can often lead to lower tax rates. However, that is not a universal truth. Around the world, many countries are adjusting their tax rates for both the general public and for businesses. This can narrow margins and make it harder to determine where you should ultimately be banking.
In Australia, for example, taxes are very high, which means that banking in Australia just isn’t competitive when compared to nearby Pan-Asian nations. That might change, as there is a shift in average taxation around the world.
At the same time, however, offshore banking havens are taking all that information into consideration and showcasing how account holders can benefit. Fortunately, destinations like Belize still offer such impressively low or even nonexistent tax rates that it continues to make sense to move money over to offshore banks here when possible.
6. Focus on Privacy
Privacy is a hot-button issue for just about every financial sector. With every hack or data leak, users become increasingly concerned about who has access to their information. Offshore banks who can offer a greater guarantee of privacy will continue to become more successful and popular with account holders and with international corporations.
Banks are employing new methods and tactics to be better guardians of the data they aim to protect. At the same time, they are working in tandem with government agencies that strive to safeguard privacy. That doesn’t mean going against disclosure policies like FATCA in the United States, but it does mean limiting what information is available to the public and what users have to disclose when they open a bank account or start a business.
7. Increased Customer Care
With an increasing number of offshore banking options available, customers are looking for a more personalized approach. In response, some offshore banks are going to extremes to accommodate customers and tailor their services to the unique needs of global bankers.
Customers don’t just want a set range of services. They also want to be able to communicate with bank employees, understand international tax laws, and learn about how to incorporate an offshore business.
The banks that stand out today and, in the years to come, will be the ones that offer this personalized approach to offshore banking.
Taking Advantage of Offshore Banking Trends
These trends reveal that offshore banking is growing, and there has never been a better time to find out for yourself. Whether you’re worried about financial privacy, estate planning, or simply asset diversification, finding the right offshore bank can make all the difference.
If you need help getting started, contact the financial professionals at Caye International Bank. Located just south of San Pedro Town in Ambergris Caye, Belize, Caye International Bank can help you better understand the benefits of offshore banking and how you can make the most of them in your own life.
Contact us today!
