NEWS

Photo By: Swiss Pix By Courtesy of The Economic Times Switzerland remains the "biggest private banking financial centers for cross border wealth management" with assets worth over CHF 2.11 trillion ($2.2 trillion), as per the study conducted by the Swiss Bankers Association (SBA) and the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). The Alpine nation is ahead of many other jurisdictions, including Caribbean and Panama' which has cross border invested assets to the tune of 1.07 trillion Swiss francs (CHF). These figures are for the year 2013. On the third place is Channel Islands and Dublin with assets worth CHF 1.05 trillion followed...

NEWS 2020

Photo By: poundsterlinglive.com By Courtesy of Lowtax.netGuernsey has welcomed the results of a United States (US) review of its procedures and systems confirming the adequacy of the island's data safeguards and infrastructure under the US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA).The US Inland Revenue Service (IRS) recently undertook the review to ensure that procedures and systems are in place so that information exchanged is kept safe and confidential and that there can be an effective exchange relationship.Both the US and Guernsey need to be satisfied that they each have the necessary procedures and systems to exchange information effectively and the...

NEWS 2020

Photo By: Over Hong Kong By Courtesy of Lowtax.netOn November 13, Hong Kong and the United States signed an inter-governmental agreement (IGA), the substantive terms of which were agreed in May this year, and which will facilitate compliance with the US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) by financial institutions in Hong Kong.FATCA, which was enacted by the US Congress in 2010 and took effect on July 1, 2014, is intended to ensure that the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) obtains information on financial accounts held at foreign financial institutions (FFIs) by US persons. Failure by an FFI to disclose...

NEWS 2020

Photo By: AFP By Courtesy of FTChina will create three new free trade zones modeled on one established a year ago in Shanghai as the government tries to support lackluster trade and boost slowing growth in the world’s second-largest economy.The three new zones will be established in the southern and eastern provinces of Guangdong and Fujian and in the northern port city of Tianjin, China’s State Council said in a statement.Shanghai’s free trade zone, or FTZ, which opened in September 2013, was heralded as a laboratory for ambitious free market reforms that would lift everything from financial and currency restrictions...

NEWS 2020

Photo By: EuroPix By Courtesy of FTGermany, France and Italy have launched a campaign to tighten EU tax rules that appears aimed at practices in Luxembourg and will add political pressure on the new European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker, the Grand Duchy’s former premier.The three countries are calling for an EU-wide law by the end of next year that would outlaw “aggressive tax planning” and close some common loopholes used by companies and member states to limit their tax bills.In a key phrase, Berlin, Paris and Rome are demanding “stricter conditions and rules” for unilateral tax rulings, a clear reference...

NEWS 2020

Photo By: Ningxia FTZ By Courtesy of Lowtax.netThe Deputy Governor of China's Ningxia Autonomous Region recently led a seven-member delegation to Jebel Ali Free Zone to discuss potential collaboration with its own equivalent, Yinchuan Free Zone.Welcoming the delegation, Salma Ali Saif Bin Hareb, CEO of Economic Zones World (EZW), the parent company of Jafza, said: "Jafza can be a springboard for businesses from North West China to establish their footprint in one of world's fastest growing regions. We will be more than happy to be a trade bridge between North West China and the Middle East."Yinchuan Free Zone was established...

NEWS 2020

Photo By: AFP January 7, 2015 Nassau, Bahamas – Earlier today, the Bahamas Information Services issued a statement indicating that the Chinese President announced that The Bahamas would trade in RMB or Residential Mortgage Backed Security. This is incorrect. The fact is that during a thirty minute meeting with Bahamian Prime Minister the Rt. Hon. Perry G. Christie and Chinese President Xi Jinping, the Chinese President announced an agreement in principle that would allow The Bahamas to be a country where debts involving international parties can be settled. He also announced an agreement that would allow The Bahamas to trade...

NEWS 2020

Photo By: Getty Images As Chinese individuals and companies head overseas in greater numbers, the country's tax authorities are starting to follow. The Beijing billionaires who set up cryptically named companies in the British Virgin Islands to hold their fortunes are in the cross hairs. So are the Guangdong salesmen living and working in Africa and Latin America. China's tax officials are now demanding that citizens start reporting exactly how much money they earn overseas. In asking for this information, national and municipal tax agencies in China are quietly beginning to enforce a little-known and widely ignored regulation: Citizens and...

NEWS 2020