 can also benefit. Mr Porter said there was a perception that offshore accounts might provide a greater degree of confidentiality and asset protection in the event of a divorce, for example. He said this 'has been tarnished' to a degree by the Panama and Paradise Paper leaks, but for decades privacy rules in places such as Switzerland and Liechtenstein provided 'considerable confidentiality'. Mr Porter said: 'From an asset protection perspective, the starting point for lawyers involved in divorce, bankruptcy or other legal proceedings where your wealth might be under threat is your 'local' financial assets – what you own domestically. 'Offshore accounts and investments held in a jurisdiction with strong privacy laws, often where they are held under an asset protection trust (where the individual no longer has legal ownership), are likely to be more difficult to access, adding time and cost to the whole process.' Another reason to consider an offshore account is if you are starting a business or buying real estate in a country where there is political instability – it might be safer to use an offshore account to conduct your dealings. If you are a British national living in the EU, you might find your UK bank account is being closed. Mr Porter said many banks no longer had a licence to serve such customers. An offshore account in the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man might offer all the same facilities as a UK account, such as sort codes, which might allow you to maintain your existing direct debits and payments. In many cases you will need to maintain a minimum balance to obtain all of the relevant banking services. But Harry Bell, director of financial planning at the wealth manager Charles Stanley, said a Swiss bank account was 'not something that the average person would gain any benefit from or necessarily even have access to'. How do the tax benefits work? Before Ap){kind=link}
Banking in the Channel Islands, or even further afield, comes with both advantages and drawbacks
Jason Porter of the financial adviser Blevins Franks said: “The wealthy who own businesses, real estate and other assets around the world use offshore centres because they offer stability and confidentiality, as well as a certain degree of asset protection.
“When assets are spread across numerous jurisdictions, an offshore bank will have the inhouse experience and expertise to deal with cross-border transfers and cashflows.”
He said modern banking technology “has meant that many offshore banks could offer their services to people far further down the financial ladder than they used to” but “they maintain the financial barriers to entry to retain the exclusivity and attraction to the wealthy”.
Other banks have exploited this technology to widen their market. But in most cases Mr Porter said they would “maintain some degree of financial qualification”, such as a minimum balance.