In the (hopefully unlikely) event that you need to flee the country and find somewhere safe to lay low, where would you run to?

This is maybe not a question that you have considered, or perhaps it is EXACTLY what’s on your mind, depending on what you’ve been up to lately! Actually, this kind of situation is not so outlandish if one really looks at it…

As of 2015, banks held over $2.6 trillion in excess reserves. But managing all of that extra cash requires time and money.

If you want to streamline your bank's cash management, you need to automate your process. The right software can help you, and it can help you optimize your time and cash flow.

Keep reading to learn more about modern cash management software.

Who needs an estate plan?

If you own a car, a house, or an entire room full of comic books, then the answer to that question would be you.

You don’t even have to be married or a parent, although being either or both justifies the need for estate planning even more.

When it comes to managing every aspect of your investment, the thought of dealing with foreign banks and businesses may not be the most ideal. After all, clarity and control are valuable to any investor. However, the benefits of an offshore investment account may just outweigh any potential negatives.

Offshore accounts can make trading between businesses easier, build better business ties, and help you stay informed on the best investment opportunities. Offshore investment accounts create these benefits and more for burgeoning investors. However, you need to understand all the red flags of an improperly managed offshore investment opportunity as well.

When it comes to working out your trust and estate administration with your estate planning attorney, the earlier you do so, the better. Taking care of such affairs first can give you a sense of freedom and relief even if there is no urgent reason to do so yet. 

Irrevocable trusts are a special type of trust which cannot be modified, amended, or cancelled, except under specific conditions. They contrast with revocable trusts, which can be changed or terminated by the grantor

This means that once you, as the grantor, transfer your assets into an irrevocable trust, you relinquish all control and ownership over them. It also means that once you name the trustee and beneficiaries, and set the terms and conditions of the trust, it is fixed.

Irrevocable trusts have their benefits in the form of greater asset protection and tax efficiency. However, there are also some disadvantages of an irrevocable trust. 

Special needs trusts are set up to benefit persons who are minors, mentally/physically disabled, or suffer from long-term illnesses that render them unable to carry on fiduciary activities.

These trusts provide a way to protect assets and can be seen as “asset reservoirs.” 

The disabled person may receive an inheritance or an accident benefit settlement, or contributions from well-wishers.

Government programs are designed for people whose income is too low to support their needs. Hence, a person with a disability who has an income above the specified limit will not be eligible to receive these benefits.

Have you been walking around with a feeling of dread because you owe the IRS money? You may be tempted to go into hiding until the IRS forgets about you. Unfortunately, that isn’t going to work – ignoring your tax debt leads to serious consequences like liens, levies, asset seizures, and wage garnishments.

Here is some good news: The IRS wants to work with you to help you pay off your outstanding debt. Let's talk about what to do if you owe the IRS money – and how to get back on sound footing with them.

With banks failing, governments coercing and economies collapsing, establishing yourself offshore is more important than ever. Despite the attention grabbing headlines showing solemn face bankers being slapped with heavy fines by the IRS for tax evasion, the offshore industry couldn’t be doing better.

The stereotype associated with the words ‘offshore tax haven’ is depicted with many negative connotations, many of which are often exaggerated depictions and plagued with erroneous associations.

Accompanying imagery brings up tropical Caribbean destinations in which greased whiten linen suit wearing mafioso types hand over briefcases full of unmarked currency to a local attorney who launders the money through an intricate series of offshore transfers.

The exaggerations, largely conjured up through Hollywood blockbusters, fills the head with such conceptualizations by exploiting the publics craving for tabloid-like headlines. As if often the case, the reality is a far cry from the romanticized picture captured by the camera.

There are a multitude of offshore products and jurisdiction all offering a dizzying array of possibilities and locations with a wide range of products and characteristics.

While many company formation vehicles often appear similar each have their own unique attributes that can support the proper growth and protection of a business depending upon its specific needs and circumstances.

Within Europe, the United Kingdom (UK), remains the most sought after jurisdiction due to its location, opportunity and reputation.

The UK offers several company formation vehicles; the UK Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) and the Scottish Limited Partnership (SLP) are two such options that give clients a wide range of possibilities.

A Limited Partnership (LP) is a hybrid structure that enjoys many benefits due to its flexibility to be used in many forms and for virtually any purpose, that become popular over the last thirty years due to its tax transparency, separate legal personality, and its ability in taking on limited partners.

Out of the many jurisdictions that offer LP’s – the New Zealand Partnership (NZLP) and the Scottish Limited Partnership (SLP) are two such structures that deserve special attention.

The Offshore financial sector can be seen to have first begun in 1815, Vienna, when Switzerland stated that it was to become a neutral state.

The industry developed slowly over the next hundred years and was primarily used by the European elite, remaining a relatively small scale industry.

It wasn’t until after World War II as the British middle class sought a way to protect their assets from a successive series of oppressive British governments who imposed a punishing top income tax rate of 90% that the development of a more expansive unregulated financial industry was established.

British legislation was passed during the 1960’s that gave permission for the use of trusts; together with the creation of the Euromarket this effectively gave banks permission to carry out unregulated deals with foreign entities if they used foreign currency, which both helped to create a more liberalized financial system.

Digital currencies or what are referred to as cryptocurrencies are an alternative medium of financial exchange and has gained momentum in the last few years, promising to reshape the global economic infrastructure by revolutionizing the medium in which goods are exchanged. The possibility of cryptocurrency is enormous, and it is difficult to estimate the impact it could have as the industry is relatively still within its early stages of experimentation and development. That being said, there are a few areas to keep an eye on

1. The Banking Industry - Bypassing the current stranglehold that centralized banks retain giving rise to Crypto Personal Investing empowering individual financial autonomy;
   
   
2. Individual Fund Management and Exchange - Revolutionary blockchain technology and Peer-2-Peer transactions will reshape the mode of exchange giving fluidity and transparency like never before; and
   
   
3. Fundraising and Venture Capital - The rise of Crypto Initial Coin Offerings (ICO) offers a new way to generate funds, build revenue, and offer investment incentives.

All of which will give individuals more autonomy, security and transparency in a highly decentralized and individualized transactional economy.

The rise of global communication technology has virtually eliminated boundaries creating a hyper-globalized economy allowing financial flows access to markets in all corners of the world.

This has enabled the spread of global transactions stimulating innovation and growth along many areas of the global economy.

However, the current trend of globalization is now fast becoming authoritarian, moving away from a hands-off liberalized version, as it has become entirely self-serving, governed and manipulated by the economic elites, Multi National Corporations (MNC), and powerful state governments and institutions that have to a large degree forced their agendas and policies on the rest of the world.

There are many reasons why an individual would chose to go offshore; as an alternative to the traditional banking system, offshore structures give individuals a form of asset protection that is unrivaled within the standard financial industry allowing complete security for all variety of assets.

The release of the Paradise Papers shows how it is used not only among the fringes of society, but is being used by some of the biggest names and companies in the world.

If these companies and individuals are going offshore for wealth protection and tax planning, there is a good chance that they are doing so for a reason.

There is a widely held misconception that offshore protection is used only by the wealthy elite and is not for the average citizen; however like all stereotypes the offshore industry suffers from many perceived illusions.

In the wake of the Paradise Paper leaks, there has been a public outcry in response to the revelation of documents connecting high profile figures and companies with offshore accounts in low-tax jurisdictions.

Though the Paradise Papers revealed no illegality, governments and the media have criticized those named in the documents accused of safeguarding wealth overseas to avoid paying higher tax rates.

Those named included the Queen of England, members of the US and Canadian Governments and Apple amongst others.

Exploiting the public’s desire for sensationalism the media has continued to portray offshore banking and finance as a shadow world of illicit underground dealings failing to recognize that it provides a necessary service that enables and supports the globalized economic structure providing many services for industries across the spectrum.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has become an attractive option in which to conduct business, due to the Free Economic Zones that offer a number of advantages to individuals and companies seeking confidential and tax-free opportunities.

In the UAE, there are two offshore jurisdictions:

Ras Al Khaimah, commonly referred to as RAK Offshore, under the jurisdiction of Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority (RAKIA)

Dubai Offshore, under the supervision of the Jebel Ali Free Zone Authority (JAFZA)

Thirty-eight Free Zones are offered by the seven Emirates in the UAE, with twenty-two in Dubai alone. Each zone is managed by a Free Trade Zone Authority that caters to a diverse range of business sectors and activities.

There are two reasons experienced traders often use offshore companies to protect their forex trading accounts.

Using an offshore formation provides benefits not found in any domestic environment. An offshore entity effectively separates yourself from your assets. This strategy provides traders with the possibility of tax advantages and enhanced privacy by using a corporate account for transactions which ensures your name is not on any transactions which creates distance between you and your trading account.

The concept of tax havens has probably been around since countries decided to finance their governments by taxing their citizens.

Partly, countries might compete by keeping taxes low and thus attracting business from high tax countries. Sometimes a country will designate a region or city a low tax or tax free zone, either to stimulate its economy or to buy the loyalty of its citizens.

Ancient Rome was a master in using tax free areas, a sort of early enterprise zones. The first recorded instance took place in the 2nd Century BC when Rome decided to undercut the then independent Greek island state of Rhodes by establishing a tax free port on the island of Delos. Even though Rhodes only charged a 2 percent on trade, it quickly lost trade to the new tax free port and its era as a commercial power was effectively ended.

Although the formation of the EU brought unity to its member nations in a number of ways, there remains substantial difference between the laws of those member nations. Tax avoidance strategies in the EU vary by country.

Some offshore tax haven countries have streamlined taxation laws that are fair to large investors, while others, such as Cyprus and Switzerland, have recently caved to foreign pressure and made their tax policies more stringent. Here, we'll take a look at some of the most popular nations among tax-savvy investors.

The modern world is seeing a rapid shift in the meaning of privacy. As technology advances and world superpowers extend their surveillance systems across the globe, it has become increasingly difficult to maintain true anonymity. Offshore bank accounts are not exempt from this trend.

Recent decades have seen developments such as relaxed privacy policies in Switzerland and increasingly broad surveillance by the U.S. However, knowing some more about the limitations of privacy in offshore banking can help you make sure you keep your assets protected.

Recent changes on the world scene, from political to economic, have altered how we view virtually everything, from what to invest in to where we choose to live. Most of these changes, admittedly, have been negative. However, there is one place that has come out of the recent flux and uncertainty even better than before. We’re talking, of course, about the tried and true haven for the global individual, and still one of the best places to retire – Panama.

Panama has certainly always been present among the thoughts of many retirees, primarily for their low cost of living. Recent changes among the rest of the world, as well as some exciting developments in Panama itself have conspired to make it the ideal destination for any who value their financial freedom.

Your economic future is at great peril. In order to better protect yourself and increase the chances of a positive financial outcome for you and your family, you must act decisively and you must act now.

Granted, that's a sobering statement for many. Some may even trivialize this point of view. However, it does accurately reflect the logical conclusion of the facts playing out in our countries and the international scene today.