Offshore Safe Deposit Boxes

A User Guide

Safe deposit boxes can be the optimal solution for storing valuables in offshore locations.
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What does ‘offshore’ actually mean?

A term much-used by politicians and the media, ‘offshore’ is a business-world geographical metaphor used to define the status of a particular location. In layman’s terms, offshore simply means ‘abroad’ – i.e. anywhere that your home country’s own rules do not apply. So legally, an offshore location is any place physically beyond the jurisdiction of a particular country.

The impact of modern communications in general, and Internet connectivity in particular, means that the popular image of an offshore location being some remote island in a vast ocean is outmoded to say the least. The offshore concept is, of course, well understood in the corporate world of business and finance. And here, the term regularly crops up in the context of foreign companies, global trade, banking, asset protection and the world of investment.

Why adopt an offshore strategy?

A wide range of individuals and corporate entities discharge their responsibilities by adopting a coherent offshore strategy. These could include anything from companies and institutions charged with working on behalf of their clients and shareholders, to families and individuals seeking to preserve and protect their assets against unforeseen and unpredictable events in a volatile world.

Broadly speaking, all such parties have some kind of duty – legal, moral or otherwise – to manage business and/or private asset portfolios to the best of their ability, with minimum exposure to risk. And while an astute grasp of global finance and its associated legal frameworks is thus essential, it’s also important to appreciate that asset portfolios invariably consist of an assortment of valuables. That’s why offshore safe deposit boxes providing discreet storage facilities in a reputable jurisdiction have a role to play in any comprehensive offshore asset-protection strategy.

Why use an offshore safe deposit box?

Theoretically at least, one could easily rent an affordable property overseas and just install a domestic safe to store a range of assets. But the limited security this could realistically provide, plus the prohibitive insurance costs, would make such an arrangement both risky and negligent.

By comparison, privately managed professional storage in a safe deposit box held within an ultra-secure vault is a practical, efficient solution owners and managers can employ to achieve the following important strategic asset-protection goals:

Minimise the impact of political and/or economic instability: Political and social events, natural disasters, pandemics and the like can affect countries in different ways. Their outcomes are often harder to predict than the weather, and can deliver unforeseen consequences. So those who choose to spread their assets as widely as possible, globalising their portfolio across multiple locations, will usually stand the best chance of surviving the worst effects of such catastrophes.
Diversify to disperse the risk: It’s rarely smart to put all your eggs in one basket. So as well as diversifying by location, shrewd operators will want to broaden their portfolios to include several classes of asset. For instance, as well as precious metals such as gold and silver, a balanced portfolio held in a secure safe deposit box might also include other valuables such as cryptocurrency, jewellery, and documents such as share certificates.
Guarantee non-bank security: The value of independent, non-bank storage can sometimes be overlooked. Firstly, such facilities are indeed bank-independent, which means they are insulated from any woes which might befall investors relying on safe deposit facilities provided by banking institutions. The problem here is twofold: Firstly, some banks are continuously vulnerable to unscrupulous governments in a position to confiscate their banking assets without warning, and secondly, even the best of banking systems are bound by regional and even global guidelines designed to regulate such financial institutions. However, Swiss Gold Safe, for example, is one of a number of premium non-bank storage facilities qualifying as a warehouse-storage facility, and thus not burdened by the same intrusive rules designed to regulate the financial sector.
Maintain enhanced privacy and confidentiality: As outlined above, many private, bank-independent storage facilities do not offer banking and financial services. Recognising this, some countries do not subject them to banking-style regulations. As a result, clients using high-quality asset storage facilities can legitimately enjoy an enhanced level of privacy in addition to legal asset protection. In such a climate free from stringent regulatory compliance, anonymity and the utmost discretion come as standard when the storage environment is not routinely subject to the automatic disclosures and routine recording prevalent in the mainstream banking sector.
Safeguard legal title: Storage facilities sometimes have two-tier systems, often described as allocated and unallocated storage, offering different levels of service. To ensure clients retain direct ownership of goods at all times, it is always best to choose an allocated storage arrangement. This means, for example, that a client storing silver bars will, upon subsequent retrieval, be guaranteed to receive the self-same bars that were originally deposited.
Secure maximum physical protection: Safe deposit boxes in exclusive, privately managed storage facilities provide dedicated, state-of-the-art protection beyond anything a high street bank or similar institution could conceivably offer and/or maintain. In addition, many private safe deposit boxes are located inside secure vaults which are themselves often located in remote terrain with a high level of physical protection.

Why an optimum location is important

As regards the choice of location, developing a sound offshore asset-protection strategy is all about achieving a practical balance. Storage needs to be secure, yet access should not be unnecessarily troublesome, and Switzerland is an excellent example of a country meeting these important criteria.

The Swiss federal republic is an independent nation at the very heart of Europe. Furthermore, Switzerland is not a member of the European Union, nor is it a participant in the European Economic Area. This long-established sovereign independence is underpinned by Switzerland’s reputation as one of the most economically and politically stable democracies in the world: A jurisdiction where privacy is respected and individual property rights are robustly protected. These features also illustrate why the Swiss Confederation also benefits from its historic ties with all major gold producers, and why this sovereign state remains one of the world’s most vibrant bullion-trading centres.

Clients seeking to create or expand an asset-protection portfolio will find Swiss Gold Safe, a company based in Switzerland, an ideal partner for such projects. An offshore location trusted by corporate institutions and private individuals alike, Swiss Gold Safe can rent non-bank safe deposit boxes housed in ultra-secure locations.

Summary:

Simply put, an offshore location is anywhere outside your home country’s jurisdiction.
Offshore safe deposit boxes can help you implement an optimal asset-protection strategy.
With an offshore safe deposit box you can diversify to mitigate risks, opt for a greater degree of privacy, and maximise the physical protection of a range of assets.
Location is a critical call: Switzerland is an ideal example of a country that meets all the important asset-protection criteria.