Posts Tagged "bearer shares"

Bearer Shares

Posted by offshorepedia on Feb 13, 2010 in Dictionary | 0 comments

Bearer shares are physical share certificates that are owned by the person that is in possession of the share certificates. The ownership of bearer shares is not recorded and the ownership remains entirely private. Thus, the ownership of an offshore company with bearer shares is only known by the holder of the bearer shares and the bearer shares may be bought, sold, or exchanged in complete privacy without any form of registration, reporting or alike.

The concept with bearer shares exists in many offshore jurisdictions and is used by many investors and corporate officers who wish to retain anonymity but ownership is extremely difficult to recover in the event of theft or loss.

What should an Offshore Company Structure look like?

Posted by offshorepedia on Jan 31, 2010 in Audio & Video, Misc | 0 comments

How an offshore company structure should be set up is entirely dependent on the purpose with the structure. An offshore company structure with the purpose to minimize taxes may be completely different from an offshore structure with the purpose to protect assets. There are no standard structure and how it is setup does also depend on the consultant hired to assist and guide the setup.

Even though there is no standard structure they often have their similarities. Often the choice of jurisdiction in which to incorporate often differs depending on the nationality and domicile of the ultimate beneficiary at the one end of the structure.

It is always interesting to see how different consultants and lawyer setup their structures, not only in order to learn but also in order to get inspired and hopefully be able to create even more innovative and useful offshore company structures in the future.

In the following videos you can watch a lawyer or consultant setting up an offshore structure in Panama with offshore companies, trusts, bearer shares, bank accounts etc. The video is a great introduction to how an offshore structure can be set up and the different tools that can be used. But as said above there is no one and best structure and accordingly this structure should not be used without first defining the purpose with the structure, applicable laws etc. And finally setting up an offshore structure shall always be made by skilled and reputable professionals in the area.

Well, here are the two videos. Enjoy.

Features of International Business Companies (IBC’s) in Belize

Posted by offshorepedia on Jan 20, 2010 in Belize, Company Formation | 0 comments

There are many features that set Belize apart from other locations for IBC creation and incorporation. Below are some of the major features:

• Competitive prices for incorporation and annual fees for a Belize IBC;
• The incorporation process for Belize Offshore companies will not take longer that 3 working days;
• A Belize offshore company is exempted from all taxes;
• The names of the shareholders and directors for offshore Belize are not a part of the public record;
• The bearer share is allowed for offshore Belize;
• Minimum of one director and shareholder required for Belize incorporation;
• To incorporate in Belize, the director(s) and the shareholder(s) can be physical person or a company;
• The director and the shareholder can be the same person;
• There is no requirement to appoint a local or any secretary for Belize companies;
• The first director of the company is appointed at the organizational meeting of the Belize corporation;
• For Belize corporations, there is no requirements to file any accounts or to provide annual audits reports;
• The register of shares has to be kept and up to date;
• A registered agent and a registered office are required;
• Annual fees are due to be paid by the 31st of July, starting from the second year of incorporation and each subsequent year thereafter;
• The Belize IBC cannot derive any income from activities in Belize;