Recommend an offshore bank account

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STEVE G
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Re: Recommend an offshore bank account

Post by STEVE G »

buksida wrote:Has anyone using HSBC offshore been hit with their latest raft of demands for a lot of personal and financial information and certified verification of address?

They're threatening to close accounts if the documents are not sent. :shock: :cuss: :guns:
I'm not surprised, HSBC are taking a hammering because of all the revelations coming out of their Swiss private banking operation from some years a go. The Guardian have got hold of all the leaked account details and it's not the actual numbers that are damning, it's all the notes that go with them, it's full of dodgy cash transactions and requests to contact people through third parties in other countries and things of that nature. It's pretty obvious that the whole thing revolved around supporting illicit activity.
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Re: Recommend an offshore bank account

Post by Dannie Boy »

STEVE G wrote:
buksida wrote:Has anyone using HSBC offshore been hit with their latest raft of demands for a lot of personal and financial information and certified verification of address?

They're threatening to close accounts if the documents are not sent. :shock: :cuss: :guns:
I'm not surprised, HSBC are taking a hammering because of all the revelations coming out of their Swiss private banking operation from some years a go. The Guardian have got hold of all the leaked account details and it's not the actual numbers that are damning, it's all the notes that go with them, it's full of dodgy cash transactions and requests to contact people through third parties in other countries and things of that nature. It's pretty obvious that the whole thing revolved around supporting illicit activity.
I'm sure this is not HSBC specific, just a general requirement by various/all financial institutions - I have some investments in the Isle of Man and have had to provide the same details of certified proof of address just recently.
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Re: Recommend an offshore bank account

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It is extremely difficult to open a new offshore account these days and one really has to consider if there are any benefits. For me the only reason was so that my savings do not come under the watchful eye of any taxation office.
I'm with Lloyds who used to the TSB and have to be one of the worst offshore banks around. I have been trying to open an alterative to Lloyds for some time and find I am not able to meet requirements. Living in Thailand I do not have telephone, electricity bills etc. in my name so cannot prove my residential address. End of application, even HSBC will not reopen my old account or use old details
Banks all over are being pursued over their under hand dealings so now they are being 100% compliant which defeats the object for most of us.
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Re: Recommend an offshore bank account

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[quote in my name so cannot prove my residential address./quote]

Get resident letter from Immigration and have certified translation.
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STEVE G
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Re: Recommend an offshore bank account

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It is extremely difficult to open a new offshore account these days and one really has to consider if there are any benefits. For me the only reason was so that my savings do not come under the watchful eye of any taxation office.
If you're non-resident for tax purposes, you don't pay any tax on interest on savings in a UK bank, so there isn't any benefit. The whole thing was basically a dodge for people who claimed to be living out of the country but hadn't really broken ties with the country and were hiding money for the future after they'd returned.
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Re: Recommend an offshore bank account

Post by StevePIraq »

Steve,
I agree with what you say, however I have been UK none resident for tax purposes since 1982, banked offshore ever since. A while back I received a letter to my Thai address even though I had never provided this to HMRO, the letter requested me to provide details of where I had worked since 1982 and provide details of my Offshore accounts, failure to provide could affect any benefits I may apply for in the future.

UK offshore banks are obliged to provide to HMRO the names of UK citizens who hold offshore accounts, however they do not have to provide any details.

I can only assume Thailand has a reciprocal agreement with the UK to provide names of UK residents in Thailand.
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Re: Recommend an offshore bank account

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We're with an IoM offshore bank, and got the same request for a lot of information. As with other posters, the proof of address was proving difficult as we have our mail sent to the university. Mr.VS sent them a polite letter explaining the problem, and a very nice lady at the bank said that she had found copies of passports etc. in our files and that we didn't have to do anything. :? So we didn't.

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Re: Recommend an offshore bank account

Post by buksida »

Any more info on offshore accounts appreciated.

I went through the entire process of opening a Citibank Singapore offshore account only for them to increase the minimum deposit by 1900% at the last minute. :cuss:

So I still need an alternative, preferably one that doesnt want half a million dollars deposit, and offers a little more interest than the paltry figure given by HSBC UK.
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StevePIraq
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Re: Recommend an offshore bank account

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Buks, I have been in the same boat for a few years, very dissatisfied with my Lloyds UK Offshore bank but it is so difficult to open an alternative.

Lloyds ex TSB used to be good years ago, now the service is very poor. Recently they have dropped the Relationship Manager from premium accounts and transactions can only be done on line or by phone and as I am often in difficult remote locations phone is not a possibility. This has caused major problems for me as for some reason on line transactions do not work on my account, Lloyds have advised they can find no issue but the problem remains. And they pay a paltry 0.05% interest.
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Re: Recommend an offshore bank account

Post by Vital Spark »

We got so fed up with Santander, that (recommended by a friend) we've now moved to the Standard Bank Isle of Man. We haven't done any transactions yet, but so far they've come across as being a lot more friendly and efficient than Santander. They have a variety of options, depending on amount deposited, accessibility, etc.

Have a look at their site: https://international.standardbank.com/

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buksida
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Re: Recommend an offshore bank account

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Thanks, had a quick look but as expected anything to do with the UK has virtually zero interest, this would be no benefit over HSBC Jersey.
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Re: Recommend an offshore bank account

Post by StevePIraq »

I think you will find no UK or main western banks giving good interest. You can of course open bank accounts in third world countries which give good interest, I see Syrian banks are giving 10% if you fancy a try.

The following is a good web site to start with.

http://www.deposits.org/
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buksida
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Re: Recommend an offshore bank account

Post by buksida »

Still no joy on this front.

HSBC now offer multi-currency fixed term accounts, I noticed a THB account at 3.2% and a CNY account at 6.7%.

The problem is that they rape you on the exchange rate so you'll ending losing more on that than you'll gain in interest.

:guns: :cuss:
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Re: Recommend an offshore bank account

Post by Pagey »

If it's fixed term you want then Conister offer 2, 2.3 and 3% on 2,3 and 5 year terms and have done for a while. The first 50k GBP is protected by the IDCS.
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Re: Recommend an offshore bank account

Post by StevePIraq »

Conister seems worthwhile considering as long as one is prepared to lock it away long term.
https://www.conisterbank.co.im/savings/ ... e-savings/
Am I eligible to open an account?
All our accounts are open to Isle of Man residents or UK Expats holding a UK passport aged 18 or over.

Have you considered using quarterly income investment notes, I use Morgan Stanley and get in excess of 10% per year, no guarantee of interest but capital is protected. To date they have given a good dividend every 3 months, with one dividend being exceptional.

Money in the bank is money losing value by the day
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