The methods of setting up and maintaining an offshore nest egg are numerous, as are the particular needs and objectives of our clients. Ideally, and as a general rule, you want to try to keep things as simple as possible. Yet, some situations are more complicated than others and may warrant convoluted structures across multiple jurisdictions. The good news is that in most cases, US investors can effectively diversify their wealth offshore without excessive complexity and high costs.

You have worked hard for what you have, but, over the past few decades, the legislative and regulatory challenges and obstacles have multiplied for anyone who wants to build or preserve even modest wealth. Unfortunately, the current trend is not your friend. Sovereign debt and deficits keep growing. The implications are quite clear: more taxes, more economic hardship, more financial repression, and a growing risk of political turmoil.

You have probably noticed that the dangers to personal wealth are gradually getting worse: income tax hikes, lawsuits, no-warning seizures, and volatile markets are among the most obvious and direct threats. But there are other hazards to consider too. The long-term trend keeps moving towards less stability in the economy and less respect for the wealth that people have worked to build.

If you think the answer for you and your family lies in diversifying internationally, you are on the right track. But without the right help, internationalizing your financial life can turn into an exercise in frustration.

Jurisdictional diversification demystified - there still is a way

Access to solid, international financial planning and asset protection strategies, or to investment structures that offer protection against predatory lawsuits and the risk of asset seizures, is often considered limited to ultra-high net worth individuals and families. While regulatory complexities do require specialized expertise, and patience, to bureaucracy and reporting, there are very interesting and straightforward strategies that investors can access without Bill Gates-level assets.

​In the past, it used to be easier to open a foreign bank account or set up a foreign trust. But those days are no longer. In the past few years, most banks, brokers, trustees and insurance companies around the world have learned that doing business with Americans comes at a higher risk. They dread getting caught in the U.S. government’s tax and regulatory crosshairs, and thus they routinely turn Americans away. Unless you know where to go and how to present yourself, all you’ll find unfortunately is an AMERICAN’S UNWELCOME mat.

Therefore, today, offshore planning is generally perceived as a complex and expensive endeavor. In fact, most US financial advisors, accountants and tax attorneys are not familiar with the options and benefits available offshore and they tend to advise against doing anything outside of US borders. For too many investors and savers, this is poor advice, which leads them to missing out on great opportunities.

At BFI, we have been helping investors find their way to financial safety for nearly 30 years, by protecting their wealth through lawful international planning. Together with our international network of partners, we have been able to offer solutions that are more comprehensive than just moving assets offshore.

All the services and solutions we provide facilitate international investments in a compliant way, but they also go beyond that: our work is focused on CONVENIENCE and SIMPLICITY, on demystifying jurisdictional diversification for Americans.

For example, you can get the safety of a solid offshore structure that is based on a trust that protects you from frivolous lawsuits and lies outside of the easy reach of surprise government seizures.

You can have a flexible and internationally diversified portfolio: multiple currencies, multiple markets, deeper diversification, and even real assets and precious metals that are physically allocated and stored in safe jurisdictions.

You can have direct access to investment management expertise and to specialized strategies and funds that have normally been reserved for ultra-high net worth individuals only.

You can reap the full benefits of tax-deferred compounding - grow your investment portfolio without the friction of capital gains taxes and income taxes, and without such tax-related impediments as passive foreign investment company (PFIC) rules.

You can get a door-opening invitation to international financial institutions that will welcome your business and that know how to service US investors.

You can enjoy maximum convenience, building relationships with the right banks, brokers, insurance companies and trust managers, developing the proper legal structures for solid protection, double reviewing everything with lawyers and accountants in every jurisdiction your structure will touch, and working together with asset managers who understand how fragile today’s economic environment really is.

​We know what convenience means. We know what “full service” means. We know you don’t want headaches. And we know you want to get the job done at a reasonable cost. The comfort and tranquility of having us as your partner and one-stop access point overseas will save you much time, money and worries.

Contact us and take us to the test.