Banking
Offshore banking or Offshore banks refers to the many banking and investment institutions available in countries and jurisdictions other than the depositor’s home country. While technically any bank can be considered an Offshore bank when it meets the above criteria, the term is generally reserved for the banking institutions located in what are consider low-regulation, low-taxation “haven” jurisdictions.

Since their origin, Offshore banks tended to be unfairly portrayed by both media and the home jurisdictions alike--the accusations have ranged from tax evasion to money laundering, but careful examination of the true purpose of the Offshore banks, and an unbiased examination of where illicit funds are truly held or “laundered” sheds light on the situation. Other false accusations have centered around criticism of unsafe environments, poor regulation, etc. Again, these could not be further from the truth. Most Offshore banking jurisdictions of any repute have very sophisticated, stable banking regulations, and because it is in their best interest to attract and keep depositors, these regulations are geared towards meeting the needs of the depositor. Many of these jurisdictions rely on foreign capital held in their banks as their primary economic factor, and as their only source of foreign investment.