Thursday, February 22, 2007

3 Reasons Why Your Business Should Not Be You

Millions of business owners make a splash about letting the world know that they and the business are essentially ‘one and the same’. This is often seen in the number of ‘Sole Proprietors’ out there who set up shop with a business checking account, some business cards and a fictitious business name (‘DBA’ or ‘doing business as’) filing with their County clerk. The risk, of course, in being a Sole Proprietor is that you and the business are legally ‘one and the same’ and thus all of your personal assets are at risk in the event of a business reversal or a lawsuit.By protecting your business inside of a legal entity, you are taking a step in the right direction to separate you and the identity of the business. Corporations and Limited Liability Companies are two much better ways to organize your business. For years, corporations have been ‘top dog’ but now the Limited Liability Company (‘LLC’) is emerging as the preferred entity of choice by business owners and investors everywhere, due to its simplicity, flexibility, protection and tax advantages. By using a company (whether corporation or LLC), you are not the business (for liability risks) and it is not you. The business can and should stand on its own – so that your personal assets are not at risk. Today there are more LLCs being formed than corporations. The emerging 'Series LLC' represents the latest evolution in company formation. The series LLC helps to keep legal and tax accounting costs down but provides for separate business enterprises operating within the same LLC 'mother ship'. Each series or cell can have its own business operations, its own liabilities, its own blance sheet. And yet, at the end of the year, all of the cells or series can be conslidated into a single tax return. Very Nice.
  • Privacy Should Not Be Overlooked
Identity theft is the fastest growing crime there is in America. A thief can use different methods, but their goal is always the same – to profit and benefit at your expense, using your identity. One of the best steps you can take to reduce your risk and increase your personal financial privacy is to utilize an entity such as an LLC.The name of the LLC or corporation should be different than yours. It can have its own Tax ID number, its own business credit profile and credit rating, its own credit and debit cards, its own vehicles and equipment, and it can separately own both real estate and other property from you. The entity and you should have separate bank accounts and separate financial identities. The less you ‘co-mingle’ personal assets and business assets the better.
Millions of business owners make a splash about letting the world know that they and the business are essentially ‘one and the same’. This is often seen in the number of ‘Sole Proprietors’ out there who set up shop with a business checking account, some business cards and a fictitious business name (‘DBA’ or ‘doing business as’) filing with their County clerk. The risk, of course, in being a Sole Proprietor is that you and the business are legally ‘one and the same’ and thus all of your personal assets are at risk in the event of a business reversal or a lawsuit.By protecting your business inside of a legal entity, you are taking a step in the right direction to separate you and the identity of the business. Corporations and Limited Liability Companies are two much better ways to organize your business. For years, corporations have been ‘top dog’ but now the Limited Liability Company (‘LLC’) is emerging as the preferred entity of choice by business owners and investors everywhere, due to its simplicity, flexibility, protection and tax advantages. By using a company (whether corporation or LLC), you are not the business (for liability risks) and it is not you. The business can and should stand on its own – so that your personal assets are not at risk. Today there are more LLCs being formed than corporations. The emerging 'Series LLC' represents the latest evolution in company formation. The series LLC helps to keep legal and tax accounting costs down but provides for separate business enterprises operating within the same LLC 'mother ship'. Each series or cell can have its own business operations, its own liabilities, its own blance sheet. And yet, at the end of the year, all of the cells or series can be conslidated into a single tax return. Very Nice.
  • Privacy Should Not Be Overlooked
Identity theft is the fastest growing crime there is in America. A thief can use different methods, but their goal is always the same – to profit and benefit at your expense, using your identity. One of the best steps you can take to reduce your risk and increase your personal financial privacy is to utilize an entity such as an LLC.The name of the LLC or corporation should be different than yours. It can have its own Tax ID number, its own business credit profile and credit rating, its own credit and debit cards, its own vehicles and equipment, and it can separately own both real estate and other property from you. The entity and you should have separate bank accounts and separate financial identities. The less you ‘co-mingle’ personal assets and business assets the better.

Sex in Advertisement: Why Does It Work

Browsing through the internet I noticed all the pretty girls sporting items like facial cream, nice cars, clothing and even sitting atop bull dozers. With their silky thighs exposed and their beautiful hair glistening in the sun I learned that sells. It not only sells but it also catches our attention and motivates us to pull out our wallets.

Why does sex sell? According to Doctor Richard Taflinger, “Sex is the second strongest of the psychological appeals, right behind self-preservation. Its strength is biological and instinctive, the genetic imperative to reproduction (Taflinger, 1996).”

Sex sells because men have a deep biological urge to reproduce. By showing a beautiful woman in skimpy clothing we are telling men “if you buy this product you can get sexy woman like this”. The message is clear to us on a subconscious level even though we may not be aware of it consciously.

Since the beginning of time men have been endowed with basic instincts of survival, reproduction and influence. Women are often symbols for a man’s success in life. The better looking the women the more the public associates her man as powerful, intelligent, influential and attractive.

Therefore, beautiful woman are attached to a man’s sense of self-worth and his basic instincts of survival. The power of sex in advertising is so strong that it sometimes overpowers men’s common sense and pushes them to make a purchase they do not need. Thus, using a little sexiness in an advertising campaign is bound to product results. Of course there is a caveat. There is a big difference between the subtle uses of sex and the overt and disrespectful use of sex that is likely to upset your customers.

Browsing through the internet I noticed all the pretty girls sporting items like facial cream, nice cars, clothing and even sitting atop bull dozers. With their silky thighs exposed and their beautiful hair glistening in the sun I learned that sells. It not only sells but it also catches our attention and motivates us to pull out our wallets.

Why does sex sell? According to Doctor Richard Taflinger, “Sex is the second strongest of the psychological appeals, right behind self-preservation. Its strength is biological and instinctive, the genetic imperative to reproduction (Taflinger, 1996).”

Sex sells because men have a deep biological urge to reproduce. By showing a beautiful woman in skimpy clothing we are telling men “if you buy this product you can get sexy woman like this”. The message is clear to us on a subconscious level even though we may not be aware of it consciously.

Since the beginning of time men have been endowed with basic instincts of survival, reproduction and influence. Women are often symbols for a man’s success in life. The better looking the women the more the public associates her man as powerful, intelligent, influential and attractive.

Therefore, beautiful woman are attached to a man’s sense of self-worth and his basic instincts of survival. The power of sex in advertising is so strong that it sometimes overpowers men’s common sense and pushes them to make a purchase they do not need. Thus, using a little sexiness in an advertising campaign is bound to product results. Of course there is a caveat. There is a big difference between the subtle uses of sex and the overt and disrespectful use of sex that is likely to upset your customers.

Tough Guys Make it Online!

Are you planning to start your own internet business? Have you seen all those fancy sales pages that promises you millions for nothing and life for free and decided to jump on the wagon? Great! But did you know that close to 95% of all internet entrepreneurs fail? Did you know that only a very few people on the internet actually makes more than 500$ a month and that only a fraction of all internet marketers are able to make their living online and even fewer make a six figure income?

If this doesn’t scare you off you must be a tough one – and you have to be tough to make it online. Not tough in a “mean” way but you really need to have the dedication it takes to keep on going, even in times when you feel like crawling backwards through a swamp. You need the spirit not to give up if you don’t see immediate results. It’s all about building momentum and to manage to create that you have to be a person who doesn’t give up!

Are you tough enough to become an internet millionaire? Do you have what it takes to make it online?

Personally I have been close to giving up many times in my life. At one point I in fact decided to let my online marketing go and I just lay it all to rest. However, I just couldn’t sit around with nothing to do and little by little I started thinking about getting into the game again. And I haven’t been in doubt ever since. To get back in was maybe the smartest choice I have ever made!

It takes a lot of work but when you have created the necessary momentum, made a system that works for you and you see the money start rolling in it sure is worth it. The flexibility of being able to work from anywhere, anytime, is such a fantastic feeling.

Now I can spend more time with my family and do the things I really want to do.

…and so can YOU!

The key to unlock your chains of miserably low income is Residual Income! When you work at a regular job you work, say, 40 hours and get paid for the hours you have worked. With Residual Income you get paid for each sale you make, but not only when you make that sale but month after month as long as the customer stays a member of the product or service you sold him. Bring in 10 customers a month and let say they all stay members for a year you will have 120 members by the end of the year. Let’s say you get 20$ per month per customer which is fairly standard – then you have a monthly income of 2400$ a month by the end of the year without any additional work! Now, all who joins every month won’t stay for a full year so you will have to fill up those empty holes with new members but you got the picture, right?

Are you planning to start your own internet business? Have you seen all those fancy sales pages that promises you millions for nothing and life for free and decided to jump on the wagon? Great! But did you know that close to 95% of all internet entrepreneurs fail? Did you know that only a very few people on the internet actually makes more than 500$ a month and that only a fraction of all internet marketers are able to make their living online and even fewer make a six figure income?

If this doesn’t scare you off you must be a tough one – and you have to be tough to make it online. Not tough in a “mean” way but you really need to have the dedication it takes to keep on going, even in times when you feel like crawling backwards through a swamp. You need the spirit not to give up if you don’t see immediate results. It’s all about building momentum and to manage to create that you have to be a person who doesn’t give up!

Are you tough enough to become an internet millionaire? Do you have what it takes to make it online?

Personally I have been close to giving up many times in my life. At one point I in fact decided to let my online marketing go and I just lay it all to rest. However, I just couldn’t sit around with nothing to do and little by little I started thinking about getting into the game again. And I haven’t been in doubt ever since. To get back in was maybe the smartest choice I have ever made!

It takes a lot of work but when you have created the necessary momentum, made a system that works for you and you see the money start rolling in it sure is worth it. The flexibility of being able to work from anywhere, anytime, is such a fantastic feeling.

Now I can spend more time with my family and do the things I really want to do.

…and so can YOU!

The key to unlock your chains of miserably low income is Residual Income! When you work at a regular job you work, say, 40 hours and get paid for the hours you have worked. With Residual Income you get paid for each sale you make, but not only when you make that sale but month after month as long as the customer stays a member of the product or service you sold him. Bring in 10 customers a month and let say they all stay members for a year you will have 120 members by the end of the year. Let’s say you get 20$ per month per customer which is fairly standard – then you have a monthly income of 2400$ a month by the end of the year without any additional work! Now, all who joins every month won’t stay for a full year so you will have to fill up those empty holes with new members but you got the picture, right?

Offshore Banking & Asset Protection Center

We are a law firm which means you have attorney client privilege – We specialize in Offshore Asset Protection. All of your affairs handled with us are covered by attorney client privilege which means that we could not reveal anything about you or your affairs without your specific permission or unless we were ordered to do so by a Panama Court (not a common occurrence). You can benefit from the legal protection and security of dealing with a licensed Panama Law Firm. If you buy an offshore corporation, offshore trust, offshore foundation or an offshore bank account from a non- law firm they could freely reveal your confidential information which they collect from you like name address, passport, name of corporation, bank account information etc. without any statutory penalties, in other words you do not have the benefit of attorney client privilege. Some of these corporate resale agents say they have some sort of financial privacy protections but it is flimsy and cursory at best.

Why use Panama – Panama is currently the new Switzerland and is also the number one retirement haven in the world. Panama does not tax offshore derived income, capital gains, etc. All tax violations in Panama are civil offenses, none are criminal and Panama has no tax treaties with any country. Panama actually requires all corporations to be formed by a lawyer to protect the privacy of their 400,000 corporations on file thus ensuring renewals each year. Panama cares about privacy, bank secrecy and asset protection. We only deal in Panama which is considered to be the most private jurisdiction in the world today, with the best bank secrecy laws, best corporate and foundation anonymity and strongest attorney client privilege in addition to having world class banks. Panama has no hurricanes, no earthquakes, no active volcanoes and no tsunamis which is why the Panama Canal was built here. So you do not have to worry about being unable to contact your bank by internet or telephone because a storm just passed over their island. Since we are in Panama we can and will represent any of clients who need legal representation in Panama with affordable rates ($150.00 hour). And yes we do get in our car and go down to the Panama banks representing our clients to open their bank accounts and to resolve any issues or problems that may come up down the road when our clients need our assistance. We are your corporate resident agent and would receive any official notices on behalf of your Panama Corporation or Panama foundation and of course we would understand the notices and could advise you not just say "hey, you got a document you need to read". We are reachable by phone and email seven days a week and of course all communications with us are privileged communications. Always feel free to ask us questions by phone or email.

We are a law firm which means you have attorney client privilege – We specialize in Offshore Asset Protection. All of your affairs handled with us are covered by attorney client privilege which means that we could not reveal anything about you or your affairs without your specific permission or unless we were ordered to do so by a Panama Court (not a common occurrence). You can benefit from the legal protection and security of dealing with a licensed Panama Law Firm. If you buy an offshore corporation, offshore trust, offshore foundation or an offshore bank account from a non- law firm they could freely reveal your confidential information which they collect from you like name address, passport, name of corporation, bank account information etc. without any statutory penalties, in other words you do not have the benefit of attorney client privilege. Some of these corporate resale agents say they have some sort of financial privacy protections but it is flimsy and cursory at best.

Why use Panama – Panama is currently the new Switzerland and is also the number one retirement haven in the world. Panama does not tax offshore derived income, capital gains, etc. All tax violations in Panama are civil offenses, none are criminal and Panama has no tax treaties with any country. Panama actually requires all corporations to be formed by a lawyer to protect the privacy of their 400,000 corporations on file thus ensuring renewals each year. Panama cares about privacy, bank secrecy and asset protection. We only deal in Panama which is considered to be the most private jurisdiction in the world today, with the best bank secrecy laws, best corporate and foundation anonymity and strongest attorney client privilege in addition to having world class banks. Panama has no hurricanes, no earthquakes, no active volcanoes and no tsunamis which is why the Panama Canal was built here. So you do not have to worry about being unable to contact your bank by internet or telephone because a storm just passed over their island. Since we are in Panama we can and will represent any of clients who need legal representation in Panama with affordable rates ($150.00 hour). And yes we do get in our car and go down to the Panama banks representing our clients to open their bank accounts and to resolve any issues or problems that may come up down the road when our clients need our assistance. We are your corporate resident agent and would receive any official notices on behalf of your Panama Corporation or Panama foundation and of course we would understand the notices and could advise you not just say "hey, you got a document you need to read". We are reachable by phone and email seven days a week and of course all communications with us are privileged communications. Always feel free to ask us questions by phone or email.

Attributes of a Good Offshore Jurisdiction

Panama has a number of unique attributes that make this a great asset protection jurisdiction for corporations, foundations, banking and stock brokerage accounts. Some call Panama the Switzerland of Latin America but this is not fair, Panama is far better than Switzerland and any other jurisdiction. Read why Panama excels:

Offshore derived Income is not taxed and does not need to be reported. You can have a Panama Corporation, and/or Foundation that banks in Panama and has an office in Panama and yet will not pay any Panama taxes if all the income is derived from offshore. Right here is a big reason for choosing Panama.

Bearer Share Corporations are allowed in Panama. Most jurisdictions have eliminated bearer share corporations. They are referred to as an S.A. Corporation having this designation after the corporate name. This means the ownership of the Corporation is not recorded anywhere just the directors (which can be employee professional directors provided by our law firm). These corporations can be used to own or control assets such as bank accounts, stock brokerage accounts, real estate, boats, planes, vehicles, businesses, precious collectibles like artwork, jewelry, stamps, coins, etc. The owner has the stock certificates of the company which can be transferred privately as often as needed with no reportage of the new owners. No one need know who owns the corporate shares except the original owner and new owner. When you think about it ownership could be transferred 10 times in a day. When you send an international bank wire using the S.A. Corporation no one monitoring the international wires as some countries do knows who the actual owners of the corporation are that are receiving the funds. If ownership of a corporation is publicly recorded rest assured it is in numerous databases and can be accessed in seconds to determine who is actually receiving money sent to a corporation.

Panama uses the US Dollar as its currency. No currency conversion costs. No currency devaluation problems or issues like most of the little tax haven countries have. In Panama the ATM machines spit out US $20 bills. Even USA coins are used in Panama. Panama is stable. It is a neutral country. Panama controls the Panama Canal and does not have a standing army. Most of these small countries never ever use their armies to repel an invading army from another country. These little banana republic countries use their armies to control the people, suspend elections, hold rigged elections, keep dictators in power under the guise of democracy etc.

Panama is in a treaty with the USA regarding the Panama Canal which Panama has sole control over. If the canal is threatened by a foreign power as in an invasion, the USA has the right to come in and protect the canal and the canal zone which is the area surrounding the canal (25 sq. miles only, not the entire country) - think aircraft carrier groups, marine expeditionary forces, air force fighter planes, navy seals, etc. The treaty does not allow the USA to take over Panama per se just the few square miles around the canal, not the banking district. So who is crazy enough to try and attack Panama, a UN certified neutral country, no one. US air force jets could be in Panama within two hours, an aircraft carrier group would probably be there in 24 hours. So we can forget about Panama being invaded by another foreign power, it would be essentially the same thing as attacking the USA directly. The same would apply if a dictator tried to seize control over Panama. The USA would see this as a potential threat to the Panama Canal and take military action, fast. The USA has no authority in Panama. Their Federal Agents have no authority or power. USA courts have no authority in Panama. Panama is a free country that has a treaty with the USA concerning protection of the Panama Canal. Interestingly enough China is involved heavily in commercial operations in the canal ports and also has a vested interest in seeing Panama and the Canal operate freely and smoothly. If anything happened to the Panama Canal shipping worldwide would be interrupted which means there are a lot of nations that want to see Panama operate as a free democracy maintaining it’s neutral status. Panama is at very low risk for revolution or military attack.

Panama holds free elections as a democracy, really and truly. Panama cares about their people. Medical care is affordable, food is cheap, housing affordable with special projects for the working folks to own their homes, homeless people are absent, college is made affordable and many young people attend. Panama has two medical schools, two dental schools, two law schools etc. In Panama 15%-20% of the work force are employed by the 135 banks domiciled there. Since Panama values these jobs do not expect to see any changes in banking laws, same for their corporate laws. Panama has over 400,000 corporations domiciled there. The only information sharing going on concerns bona fide criminal cases on file in a court as a criminal prosecution, serious criminal cases of money laundering and narcotics trafficking, terrorism, and child pornography. Panama has little interest in pursuing fiscal crimes. Income tax violations in Panama are civil offenses only. Panama also serves as a maritime registry for ocean going vessels. Panama is anything but a banana republic. You can feel safe and secure in Panama. Go for a visit if you like.

Panama Banks are stable and well established with substantial assets. Panama Savings and Loans have $10,000 insurance on the individual accounts. Panama Banks have the best privacy laws in the world; the BEST got it, the VERY BEST. You have the greatest chance of protecting your money from your potential or actual financial enemies in Panama. If you go to actually visit some of the other frequently used asset protection countries you see unpaved streets, poor impoverished people, lack of computerization in government offices, ancient telephone systems, poor health care, a government that is as corrupt as can be and you may find out your "Bank" is located on an unpaved road, in a second story walk-up office building over a grocery store. You do not want to bank in these places. People have lost billions banking in these island and banana republics. In Panama your bank may very well have a 40 story modern hi rise office building with their name on it.

In Panama as one of our clients you are going to be banking with a bank that has a real banking license. This means that the bank can conduct transactions with citizens of Panama as well as citizens and companies located outside of Panama. The bank will have branch offices with tellers, drive through windows, ATM machines etc. The bank has to post $10,000,000 cash with the government as one of their license requirements. In many offshore jurisdictions there are “Offshore Banking Licenses.” These licenses allow the bank to only open accounts for people who are not citizens of the country. Sort of makes you feel scared or it should. These offshore banks can't do business with residents of the country they are located in! Additionally the deposits required for an Offshore Banking license in some of these jurisdictions is typically $100,000 to $1,000,000 compared to the $10,000,000 Panama requires. Panama banks have their own ACH system which allows for online transfers from one Panama bank to another at a cost of about $1.00 per transaction. Currently thirty Panama banks are in the system. These transfers do not go over the international wire systems. Panama banks allow for the deposit of checks drawn in US dollars, clearing takes two to three weeks. Most offshore banks will not take checks any more or if they do, they put long holds on them like ninety days.

Panama has a number of unique attributes that make this a great asset protection jurisdiction for corporations, foundations, banking and stock brokerage accounts. Some call Panama the Switzerland of Latin America but this is not fair, Panama is far better than Switzerland and any other jurisdiction. Read why Panama excels:

Offshore derived Income is not taxed and does not need to be reported. You can have a Panama Corporation, and/or Foundation that banks in Panama and has an office in Panama and yet will not pay any Panama taxes if all the income is derived from offshore. Right here is a big reason for choosing Panama.

Bearer Share Corporations are allowed in Panama. Most jurisdictions have eliminated bearer share corporations. They are referred to as an S.A. Corporation having this designation after the corporate name. This means the ownership of the Corporation is not recorded anywhere just the directors (which can be employee professional directors provided by our law firm). These corporations can be used to own or control assets such as bank accounts, stock brokerage accounts, real estate, boats, planes, vehicles, businesses, precious collectibles like artwork, jewelry, stamps, coins, etc. The owner has the stock certificates of the company which can be transferred privately as often as needed with no reportage of the new owners. No one need know who owns the corporate shares except the original owner and new owner. When you think about it ownership could be transferred 10 times in a day. When you send an international bank wire using the S.A. Corporation no one monitoring the international wires as some countries do knows who the actual owners of the corporation are that are receiving the funds. If ownership of a corporation is publicly recorded rest assured it is in numerous databases and can be accessed in seconds to determine who is actually receiving money sent to a corporation.

Panama uses the US Dollar as its currency. No currency conversion costs. No currency devaluation problems or issues like most of the little tax haven countries have. In Panama the ATM machines spit out US $20 bills. Even USA coins are used in Panama. Panama is stable. It is a neutral country. Panama controls the Panama Canal and does not have a standing army. Most of these small countries never ever use their armies to repel an invading army from another country. These little banana republic countries use their armies to control the people, suspend elections, hold rigged elections, keep dictators in power under the guise of democracy etc.

Panama is in a treaty with the USA regarding the Panama Canal which Panama has sole control over. If the canal is threatened by a foreign power as in an invasion, the USA has the right to come in and protect the canal and the canal zone which is the area surrounding the canal (25 sq. miles only, not the entire country) - think aircraft carrier groups, marine expeditionary forces, air force fighter planes, navy seals, etc. The treaty does not allow the USA to take over Panama per se just the few square miles around the canal, not the banking district. So who is crazy enough to try and attack Panama, a UN certified neutral country, no one. US air force jets could be in Panama within two hours, an aircraft carrier group would probably be there in 24 hours. So we can forget about Panama being invaded by another foreign power, it would be essentially the same thing as attacking the USA directly. The same would apply if a dictator tried to seize control over Panama. The USA would see this as a potential threat to the Panama Canal and take military action, fast. The USA has no authority in Panama. Their Federal Agents have no authority or power. USA courts have no authority in Panama. Panama is a free country that has a treaty with the USA concerning protection of the Panama Canal. Interestingly enough China is involved heavily in commercial operations in the canal ports and also has a vested interest in seeing Panama and the Canal operate freely and smoothly. If anything happened to the Panama Canal shipping worldwide would be interrupted which means there are a lot of nations that want to see Panama operate as a free democracy maintaining it’s neutral status. Panama is at very low risk for revolution or military attack.

Panama holds free elections as a democracy, really and truly. Panama cares about their people. Medical care is affordable, food is cheap, housing affordable with special projects for the working folks to own their homes, homeless people are absent, college is made affordable and many young people attend. Panama has two medical schools, two dental schools, two law schools etc. In Panama 15%-20% of the work force are employed by the 135 banks domiciled there. Since Panama values these jobs do not expect to see any changes in banking laws, same for their corporate laws. Panama has over 400,000 corporations domiciled there. The only information sharing going on concerns bona fide criminal cases on file in a court as a criminal prosecution, serious criminal cases of money laundering and narcotics trafficking, terrorism, and child pornography. Panama has little interest in pursuing fiscal crimes. Income tax violations in Panama are civil offenses only. Panama also serves as a maritime registry for ocean going vessels. Panama is anything but a banana republic. You can feel safe and secure in Panama. Go for a visit if you like.

Panama Banks are stable and well established with substantial assets. Panama Savings and Loans have $10,000 insurance on the individual accounts. Panama Banks have the best privacy laws in the world; the BEST got it, the VERY BEST. You have the greatest chance of protecting your money from your potential or actual financial enemies in Panama. If you go to actually visit some of the other frequently used asset protection countries you see unpaved streets, poor impoverished people, lack of computerization in government offices, ancient telephone systems, poor health care, a government that is as corrupt as can be and you may find out your "Bank" is located on an unpaved road, in a second story walk-up office building over a grocery store. You do not want to bank in these places. People have lost billions banking in these island and banana republics. In Panama your bank may very well have a 40 story modern hi rise office building with their name on it.

In Panama as one of our clients you are going to be banking with a bank that has a real banking license. This means that the bank can conduct transactions with citizens of Panama as well as citizens and companies located outside of Panama. The bank will have branch offices with tellers, drive through windows, ATM machines etc. The bank has to post $10,000,000 cash with the government as one of their license requirements. In many offshore jurisdictions there are “Offshore Banking Licenses.” These licenses allow the bank to only open accounts for people who are not citizens of the country. Sort of makes you feel scared or it should. These offshore banks can't do business with residents of the country they are located in! Additionally the deposits required for an Offshore Banking license in some of these jurisdictions is typically $100,000 to $1,000,000 compared to the $10,000,000 Panama requires. Panama banks have their own ACH system which allows for online transfers from one Panama bank to another at a cost of about $1.00 per transaction. Currently thirty Panama banks are in the system. These transfers do not go over the international wire systems. Panama banks allow for the deposit of checks drawn in US dollars, clearing takes two to three weeks. Most offshore banks will not take checks any more or if they do, they put long holds on them like ninety days.