EXPERT INSIGHTS

By Gerard Field   As a CEO of an international private bank, I find clients will spend much time and effort in selecting the right offshore jurisdiction for them taking into account the legal framework, regulations and whether the jurisdictions meet their individual requirements for what they require to be that asset protection, privacy, and strength of regulator to name a few key areas.     Once jurisdiction has been selected then a review of the banking partners that are available will be a key determinant of using that jurisdiction. Considerations will include how strong the bank is in terms of a...

PRIVATE & INTERNATIONAL BANKING EXPERT INSIGHTS 2020

By Cheyenna Calderon   COVID-19 has impacted all aspects of life and many of the changes it has brought will be here to stay. Private Banks post-COVID are being called on to reinvent themselves and become more agile and responsive in order to thrive in this new world. For international families and corporate entities that utilize private banks and have assets and interests in offshore jurisdictions like the Cayman Islands, COVID has brought on some enhanced expectations that Private Banks and their Bankers need to meet going forward.   According to the 2020 McKinsey Affluent, Private, and HNWI Customers’ Insights Survey, clients are...

PRIVATE & INTERNATIONAL BANKING EXPERT INSIGHTS 2020

By Julian Bartolo   With the possibility of obtaining a second residence or citizenship by investment, applicants and their families are choosing to migrate permanently to other countries. Business, education, better healthcare and political or social disturbances are only a few of the reasons these individuals opt to relocate to another country. Others need assurances and a default ”plan b” in the event of uncertain times.   Obtaining dual citizenship or a second residency is more than just a document in hand. Although the advantages vary from one programme and jurisdiction to another, the results of investing in citizenship &...

IMMIGRATION BY INVESTMENT EXPERT INSIGHTS 2020

Citizenship by investment, once the domain of the very few, is increasingly popular with discerning West African high net worth investors. The concept is very simple and enshrined in the relevant country’s No, thanks. I'll come back legislation: in return for a real estate investment or a contribution to the relevant country, an investor is afforded the opportunity to apply for citizenship of a country, and if successful, eligible for many of the benefits that follow, including visa-free travel to many worldwide destinations, access to a tax-efficient jurisdiction, and much more.  From its early beginnings about 40 years ago, it has grown...

IMMIGRATION BY INVESTMENT EXPERT INSIGHTS 2020

The Grenada Citizenship by Investment Programme (GCIP) raised EC$166 million in 2019, 13% more than its 2018 record. Driving the upward trend was a sharp uptick in real estate investments during the fourth quarter. The GCIP received 373 applications in 2019, 60 more than in 2018, the previous record year. Of those, the Grenada CIU rejected 44, a refusal rate of about 12%. The CIU’s decisions resulted in 814 new citizens. Grenada’s real estate option appears to be enjoying a renaissance; in the fourth quarter, the number of investors who opted for property invested exceeded that of those choosing donations,...

IMMIGRATION BY INVESTMENT EXPERT INSIGHTS 2020

This next September will mark seven years since the Law 14/2013 of Support For Entrepreneurs And Their Internationalization (the Spanish “Golden Visa” Law) entered into force in Spain. The Spanish Administration has not still published the figures for the full year of 2019 but, in the first half of the year alone, Spain approved 848 applications for residence by investment, making it the second-most applied-to investment migration program in Europe during the period, surpassed only by that of Greece, which has a real estate investment option significantly lower in price terms.  This success may reasonably constitute the basis of making investment migration a policy-priority and...

IMMIGRATION BY INVESTMENT EXPERT INSIGHTS 2020

The volume of applications to Turkey’s citizenship by investment program (CIP), as reported by the government, defies belief; nearly 25,000 new citizens in 17 months. In September last year, Turkey’s Interior Ministry said 2,611 investors and 7,351 dependents had obtained citizenship by investment under Turkey’s CIP in the first year since investment requirements were reduced from US$1 million to US$250,000. Those figures came as a shock to the RCBI-world; seemingly out of nowhere, the program had become the world’s most popular CIP, the absence of a visa-waiver agreement with Schengen notwithstanding. Now, a recent set of data from the government put to...

IMMIGRATION BY INVESTMENT EXPERT INSIGHTS 2020

Faced with rising minimum investment requirements among residence and citizenship by investment programs across the globe, China’s IM market will respond in one of three ways. Just as we rang in the new year, Singapore set off the opening salvo on 2020 investment migration (IM) program price hikes, and several other programs have hinted at intentions to follow suit. We needn’t look far for examples: The Greek government has publicly contemplated a doubling of required amounts for its golden visa program; the Australian government says it believes requirements for its SIV are too low; the US EB-5 program recently raised prices by 80%. How...

IMMIGRATION BY INVESTMENT EXPERT INSIGHTS 2020