As a quick overview, here are some benefits of offshore companies:
· Ability to open a corporate bank account · No taxes at a corporate level · Privacy (for both directors and shareholders) · Strong asset protection · Professional appearance · Debts, assets, licenses, contracts can be made or held by the legal entity · Liability is limited, and you distanced from the actions of your business Incorporate a company is a prerequisite for any serious business. Going offshore, you can also experience these benefits: · Banking/investment opportunities otherwise not available · Planting a flag in a strategic jurisdiction · Mitigation of sovereign risk · Protection from bankruptcy, lawsuits, divorce, civil unrest, and other ‘worst case scenarios‘ · Access to higher risk merchant accounts · Access to funding or investment capital It should be obvious that there are tremendous advantages for entrepreneurs who have incorporated either an onshore or offshore company. Some legal entities can even lead to passports or citizenship – A Singapore, for example, is one such jurisdiction which allows for residency and eventual citizenship for individuals who set up a company there. Not every jurisdiction was built the same Hong Kong, for example, has yearly audit requirement, something you might not want to deal with. Singapore is great for someone sourcing physical goods, but their requirement of a local director makes it an expensive option. Incorporation and passports is my business, and every day I’m on the phone with: 1. Entrepreneurs who need incorporate a company, 2nd passport, or offshore bank account 2. Service providers across the globe who provide me with a wholesale discount 3. Lawyers, accountants, agents and bankers with boots on the ground information The Best Corporate Structure for Your Business Whether you are sourcing physical goods from Shenzhen, coding in Berlin, setting up niche sites in Cebu, or writing copy in Medellin, you can use our tools to find out the best place where you should incorporate. Here are some starting options for setting up an offshore company and where you can read more: · Wyoming LLC · British Virgin Islands IBC · Nevis LLC or IBC · Belize LLC or IBC There are also some other places where setting up a company can grant you special benefits, such as residency, and in some cases even a new passport. All from starting companies: · Thailand · Singapore · New Zealand · China · Cambodia · Myanmar How much does it cost to incorporate? Short answer: it costs more to get it wrong! If you incorporate in the wrong state in the US (i.e. Florida) and you are the sole owner, you won’t have single member charging order protection – which means that the creditor can easily pierce the corporate veil – simply by nature of you running your own business! And, they can liquidate your assets to pay off creditors. This has happened, and it will happen again, don’t let it happen to you. If you incorporate in Florida, you could literally lose every asset you own (besides your house, which will be protected under a law called the homestead exemption) and pay high tax, but what about if you are smart enough to set up offshore? Some jurisdictions have hidden costs. A Private Limited Company in Singapore, for instance, requires a local director which can cost $3000 per year, with a $10,000 deposit, and if you want to wind up a company (hey, it happens, not every business works out) it can easily cost you $5000 by the time you get done paying the secretary to get your accounts current with the tax man and you post the mandatory advertisement in the local papers. If a creditor contacts you, you have to start the whole process again. This can easily cost $15,000. This is our main line of business and it’s what we do on a regular basis for customers. Contact us; we look forward to doing business with you. Large corporations and multinational companies understand the importance corporate structure, because this can have powerful impact on the bottom line. The media confounds and exacerbates the problem by publishing misinformation. They have created a label that anything “offshore” means something illegal or are about evading tax. This is a means of scare tactics that confounds the truth of the situation: forming international companies is completely legal, effective, and in many cases, essential.
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Companies that have publicly traded securities typically use transfer agents to keep track of the individuals and entities that own their stocks and bonds. Most transfer agents are banks or trust companies, but sometimes a company acts as its own transfer agent.
Transfer agents perform three main functions: 1.Issue and cancel certificates to reflect changes in ownership. For example, when a company declares a stock dividend or stock split, the transfer agent issues new shares. Transfer agents keep records of who owns a company’s stocks and bonds and how those stocks and bonds are held—whether by the owner in certificate form, by the company in book-entry form, or by the investor’s brokerage firm in street name. They also keep records of how many shares or bonds each investor owns. 2.Act as an intermediary for the company. A transfer agent may also serve as the company’s paying agent to pay out interest, cash and stock dividends, or other distributions to stock- and bondholders. In addition, transfer agents act as proxy agent (sending out proxy materials), exchange agent (exchanging a company’s stock or bonds in a merger), tender agent (tendering shares in a tender offer), and mailing agent (mailing the company’s quarterly, annual, and other reports). 3.Handle lost, destroyed, or stolen certificates. Transfer agents help shareholders and bondholders when a stock or bond certificate has been lost, destroyed, or stolen. If this has happened to you, read our publication entitled Stock Certificates, Lost, Stolen. Also, if you hold securities in your own name and want to transfer or sell them, you may need to get your signature "guaranteed" before a transfer agent will accept the transaction. For information about transferring your securities, please read "Signature Guarantees: Preventing the Unauthorized Transfer of Securities" in our Fast Answers databank. In many cases, you can find out which transfer agent a company uses by visiting the investor relations section of the company’s website. You also can use the website of the Securities Transfer Association, a private trade organization of transfer agents. The STA provides general information about the functions of transfer agents. Please note that the STA is not equipped to respond to individual inquiries via the telephone, mail, or e-mail. Shareholders with any transfer related inquiries would be best served by speaking to the transfer agent or issuer for the security in question, or their broker-dealer. |