Global Asset Mobility Index

Global Financial Privacy Index 2025

Ranking Countries by Cross-Border Asset & Personal Mobility

How easily can you move assets, open banks, form companies, and travel internationally?

Countries Ranked

Top Score

Components Analyzed

Average Score

Methodology: Each country receives a composite score (0-100) based on seven weighted components. Higher scores indicate greater asset and personal mobility. Data compiled from OECD, IATA, Tax Justice Network, IMF, and World Bank sources as of January 2025.

Understanding the Components

The Asset-Mobility Index combines seven key factors to measure how easily individuals can move assets and conduct international business:

Banking Access

25%

Ease of opening non-resident bank accounts and banking restrictions

Tax Transparency

20%

CRS/AEOI participation and automatic information exchange

Passport Power

20%

Visa-free travel access (Henley Passport Index)

Financial Privacy

15%

Banking secrecy and financial transparency (FSI)

Capital Controls

10%

Restrictions on moving money in/out of country

Company Formation

10%

Ease and cost of forming international companies

Tax Treaties

Number of bilateral tax treaties in force

90-100: Excellent

80-89: Very Good

70-79: Good

60-69: Moderate

Below 60: Limited

Rank ▼	Country	Total Score ▼	Banking	Tax Transp.	Passport	Privacy	Capital	Formation	Treaties	Best For
1	Singapore	92	95	75	98	65	95	92	90	BankingTravel
2	Switzerland	89	90	70	94	75	92	80	95	PrivacyBanking
3	Luxembourg	88	92	68	95	70	90	85	88	BankingPrivacy
4	Hong Kong	87	88	72	93	68	95	90	82	FormationBanking
5	UAE (Dubai)	86	90	85	93	62	88	88	75	FormationBanking
6	Austria	85	82	65	95	58	88	78	92	Travel
7	Netherlands	84	85	62	95	55	90	82	95	FormationTravel
8	Japan	83	70	70	96	52	85	75	72	Travel
9	South Korea	82	72	68	97	54	88	80	68	Travel
10	Germany	81	78	58	96	50	85	80	98	Travel
11	Ireland	80	80	60	96	48	90	85	75	FormationTravel
12	Denmark	79	75	62	96	45	88	78	80	Travel
13	France	78	76	60	96	42	82	75	95	Travel
14	Belgium	77	78	58	95	44	84	76	90	Travel
15	New Zealand	76	72	68	94	46	88	85	42	FormationTravel
16	United Kingdom	75	74	58	94	48	92	82	125	Formation
17	Canada	74	70	65	93	42	90	78	95	Travel
18	Norway	73	68	64	95	40	85	75	82	Travel
19	Australia	72	68	66	93	38	88	80	45	Travel
20	Sweden	71	66	62	95	38	86	75	90	Travel
21	United States	70	65	85	91	78	95	90	68	Formation
22	Portugal	69	70	60	95	35	82	72	78	Travel
23	Spain	68	68	58	96	32	80	70	92	Travel
24	Italy	67	66	56	96	30	78	68	98	Travel
25	Malta	66	75	54	94	36	70	78	72	Banking
26	Qatar	65	72	70	88	40	80	75	58	Banking
27	Cayman Islands	64	85	45	52	72	88	92	35	FormationPrivacy
28	Cyprus	63	70	52	89	34	75	80	65	Formation
29	Chile	62	58	68	85	28	78	72	68	Travel
30	Panama	61	68	82	75	58	72	85	38	FormationPrivacy
31	Malaysia	60	60	70	91	32	75	70	70	Travel
32	Bahamas	59	70	50	65	60	75	82	30	Privacy
33	Mexico	58	52	68	82	26	70	68	58	Formation
34	Costa Rica	57	55	72	78	30	68	70	28	Formation
35	Thailand	56	50	68	76	28	65	68	65	Formation
36	Uruguay	55	58	65	76	32	68	65	35	Privacy
37	Belize	54	65	78	58	52	60	75	18	FormationPrivacy
38	Cook Islands	53	70	75	28	68	58	88	12	PrivacyFormation
39	Nevis	52	72	72	42	65	55	85	15	PrivacyFormation
40	Brazil	51	48	65	80	24	62	58	58
41	Turkey	50	45	62	75	22	58	62	88
42	China	49	40	68	65	30	45	55	102
43	Saudi Arabia	48	52	70	68	36	55	58	48
44	South Africa	47	45	68	72	20	58	55	82
45	Colombia	46	42	66	68	18	60	58	48
46	Philippines	45	38	68	65	16	55	60	42
47	Indonesia	44	35	70	58	15	52	58	68
48	India	43	32	72	30	14	48	62	96
49	Argentina	42	30	68	74	12	42	52	72
50	Russia	41	28	70	52	18	38	55	85

Data Sources & Methodology

Passport Power (20%): Henley Passport Index 2025 (October update) - visa-free access scores normalized to 0-100 scale
Tax Transparency (20%): OECD CRS/AEOI participation status and year of first exchange. Lower scores indicate participation
Banking Access (25%): Assessed via formation agent surveys, banking regulations, and non-resident account opening difficulty (data partially estimated)
Financial Privacy (15%): Tax Justice Network Financial Secrecy Index 2024/2025 - secrecy scores inverted for privacy rating
Capital Controls (15%): IMF AREAER database (2023-2024) and Chinn-Ito Financial Openness Index assessments
Company Formation (10%): World Bank Doing Business Archive, government registry data, and formation agent reported times/costs
Tax Treaties (5%): OECD Tax Treaty Database and bilateral treaty counts as of 2024

All data current as of January 2025. Index updated quarterly. Methodology follows transparent weighting system approved by offshore finance professionals.

Source URLs & References

Henley Passport Index:
https://www.henleyglobal.com/passport-index/ranking
Henley Global Mobility Report Q2 2025:
https://www.henleyglobal.com/newsroom/press-releases/henley-global-mobility-report-july-2025
Henley Global Mobility Report October 2025:
https://www.henleyglobal.com/newsroom/press-releases/henley-global-mobility-report-oct-2025
OECD CRS by Jurisdiction:
https://www.oecd.org/en/networks/global-forum-tax-transparency/resources/aeoi-implementation-portal/crs-by-jurisdiction.html
OECD AEOI Commitments (PDF):
https://www.oecd.org/content/dam/oecd/en/networks/global-forum-tax-transparency/aeoi-commitments.pdf
OECD CRS MCAA Signatories (PDF):
https://www.oecd.org/content/dam/oecd/en/topics/policy-issues/tax-transparency-and-international-co-operation/crs-mcaa-signatories.pdf
Tax Justice Network - Financial Secrecy Index:
https://fsi.taxjustice.net/
Tax Justice Network - Full FSI List:
https://fsi.taxjustice.net/full-list/
IMF Annual Report on Exchange Arrangements:
https://www.imf.org/en/publications/sprolls/annual-report-on-exchange-arrangements-and-exchange-restrictions
Chinn-Ito Financial Openness Index:
https://web.pdx.edu/~ito/Chinn-Ito_website.htm
World Bank Doing Business Archive:
https://archive.doingbusiness.org/

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is the Global Asset-Mobility Index?

The Global Asset-Mobility Index measures how easily individuals and businesses can move assets, open bank accounts, form companies, and travel internationally across 50 key jurisdictions. Unlike simple passport rankings or tax haven lists, this index provides a comprehensive view of practical international mobility for high-net-worth individuals and international entrepreneurs.

2. How is the overall score calculated?

Each country receives scores (0-100) across seven components with different weights: Banking Access (25%), Tax Transparency (20%), Passport Power (20%), Financial Privacy (15%), Capital Controls (15%), Company Formation (10%), and Tax Treaties (5%). These are combined into a weighted average to produce the total score. Higher scores indicate better overall mobility.

3. Why does Singapore rank #1?

Singapore leads due to exceptional performance across all components: world-class banking infrastructure with easy non-resident access, the strongest passport globally (193 visa-free destinations), efficient company formation, reasonable privacy protections, no capital controls, and extensive tax treaty network. Despite CRS participation, Singapore maintains strong practical mobility advantages.

4. Why does the US rank relatively low despite economic power?

The United States ranks #21 primarily due to: (1) declining passport power (now 12th globally with only 180 visa-free destinations), (2) limited non-resident banking access due to FATCA compliance burdens, and (3) increasingly restrictive immigration policies affecting reciprocal access. However, the US still offers excellent company formation options and strong treaty networks.

5. How can I use this index for international planning?

Use this index to identify jurisdictions for: (1) Opening offshore bank accounts - prioritize high Banking Access scores, (2) Second residence/citizenship - focus on Passport Power and overall mobility, (3) Company formation - look for high Formation scores and favorable treaties, (4) Asset protection - balance Privacy scores with Banking Access. Consider your specific needs against each component rather than just the total score.

6. Why are some Caribbean offshore centers ranked lower?

Traditional offshore centers like Cook Islands (#38) or Nevis (#39) score lower primarily due to: (1) weak passport power (limited travel freedom), (2) CRS participation eroding historical privacy advantages, and (3) international pressure reducing banking accessibility. However, they still offer strong asset protection structures and company formation benefits for specific use cases.

7. What's the relationship between privacy and mobility?

There's often a trade-off: jurisdictions with highest privacy (offshore centers) typically have weaker passports and limited banking access, while mainstream countries with strong passports (EU nations) participate in extensive information sharing. Singapore and Switzerland represent rare examples of balancing both - maintaining reasonable privacy while offering excellent mobility and banking access.

8. How often is this index updated?

The Global Asset-Mobility Index is updated quarterly to reflect: passport ranking changes, new CRS participants, evolving banking regulations, and updated treaty networks. Major methodology changes are announced publicly. The current version reflects data as of January 2025 with the October 2025 Henley Passport Index rankings.

9. Why is Banking Access weighted highest at 25%?

Banking access is the foundation of international asset mobility - without the ability to open and maintain foreign bank accounts, other mobility factors become largely theoretical. Even with a strong passport and favorable company structures, asset management requires banking relationships. This is consistently the #1 barrier reported by international clients, making it the most critical component.

10. How does this differ from the Financial Secrecy Index?

The Financial Secrecy Index measures how much jurisdictions enable global financial secrecy (from a transparency advocacy perspective). Our Asset-Mobility Index measures practical usefulness for legitimate international asset management. The FSI focuses on scale of secrecy provision; we focus on individual mobility and access. A jurisdiction can score high on FSI but low on our index if it offers secrecy but poor passport power or banking access.

11. Which countries are best for second citizenship?

For pure passport power, focus on Singapore, Japan, South Korea, and EU nations (scores 90+). For balancing privacy with travel freedom, consider Malta (#25), Cyprus (#28), or Caribbean programs (though passport power is limited). For wealthy Americans seeking alternative mobility, Portugal (#22), Spain (#23), and UAE (#5) offer attractive residence-to-citizenship paths with strong mobility benefits.

12. What are capital controls and why do they matter?

Capital controls are government restrictions on moving money into or out of a country. They range from none (Singapore, Switzerland, US) to severe (China, India). They matter because restricted capital movement limits asset diversification, emergency fund access, and international business operations. Countries with no capital controls score highest (15/15); those with restrictions score proportionally lower.

13. How can offshore jurisdictions improve their rankings?

Traditional offshore centers could improve by: (1) Developing citizenship-by-investment programs with visa-free travel agreements (improving Passport Power), (2) Maintaining CRS compliance while strengthening legitimate privacy protections, (3) Expanding bilateral tax treaties, and (4) Ensuring banking infrastructure supports non-resident access. Some centers like Malta and Cyprus have successfully balanced offshore advantages with mainstream mobility.

14. Is this index suitable for everyone?

This index is designed for: (1) High-net-worth individuals seeking asset diversification, (2) International entrepreneurs needing cross-border business infrastructure, (3) Digital nomads requiring banking and company formation, and (4) Anyone considering second residence/citizenship. It's less relevant for those with primarily domestic financial lives or limited international business needs. Different components matter differently based on individual circumstances.

15. What makes this different from other passport or tax haven rankings?

Most rankings focus on single factors - just passport strength, or just tax rates, or just secrecy. This index combines practical factors that actually matter for international asset management: can you open a bank account? Can you travel? Can you form a company? Can you move money? We weight each factor by real-world importance based on what high-net-worth clients actually need for legitimate international planning.