HeritageHeritage is a specialist wealth protection and international estate planning service created in 1995 by Asiaciti Trust for the benefit of clients of lawyers, accountants and licensed financial or estate planners. The service is only available through professional advisors approved by Asiaciti Trust. Heritage combines the services and facilities of the Cook Islands, New Zealand, Samoa and Singapore offices of Asiaciti Trust, and involves the use of international trusts, foreign life insurance companies and overseas based international banks and investment management companies. It may where appropriate also involve the use of corporations registered in international finance centres. Heritage's objectives Heritage was developed in recognition of the opportunities provided by the globalisation of investment markets and the availability of protective legislation offshore, and also in response to the massive escalation of risk factors that adversely affect the preservation of wealth. The objective of Heritage is to provide professional advisors with the facilities to create for their clients an ownership structure that protects family wealth and simultaneously achieves the client's estate planning requirements. Risks to preservation of wealth Financial disaster may arise from a wide variety of risk factors. Punitive inheritance tax regimes, extravagant family members, mismanagement of business enterprises, political changes resulting in expropriation of assets, or the imposition of currency controls are the risk factors that have traditionally influenced wealth protection strategies. In an ever increasing number of countries we have seen an escalation of personal risks as a result of punitive awards by juries or over zealous courts, recognition of liability for environmental risk factors, inceased liability exposure of non-executive directors as corporate laws become more protective of creditors and shareholders, and in the latter case, legislation that strips away the traditional protection of the corporate shield. In the modern world other risk factors include:
Additionally the globalisation of business and the internationalisation of investment strategies have broadened the area of risk exposure. Wealth protection strategies Today wealth protection planning is an essential consideration in the development of financial strategies for not only the seriously rich and the wealthy businessman, but also for professional practitioners and company directors. There are many different strategies that may be adopted to protect wealth. Some of these are straight forward, common sense risk management techniques, ranging from the simple transfer of assets into a corporation, to more complex structures involving limited partnerships, corporations and trusts. The conduct of business through a corporation is in itself a form of wealth protection as it utilizes the benefits of limited liability provided by corporate law. However the use of corporations alone will not be adequate protection for most wealthy families. On the other hand, complex asset transfer transactions which rely upon untested legal interpretations and often do not involve any physical transfer of assets, may prove to be equally ineffective in protecting wealth from the contingencies of the modern day business and legal world. It is apparent however that offshore based asset protection strategies should be an integral part of most wealth protection plans. Asiaciti Trust's Heritage service focuses on the use of more effective and prudent wealth protection techniques which do not necessarily involve complex asset ownership structures. Developing a wealth protection plan The starting point of any wealth or asset protection plan is a consideration of the laws of the client's domestic jurisdiction. Setting up an international asset protection plan will not absolve the client from the need to comply with domestic laws. Laws which may be relevant would be those governing issues such as exchange controls and foreign investment, estate duties or inheritance taxes, capital gains taxes, gift or transfer taxes, bankruptcy and in particular fraudulent conveyances, and matrimonial settlements. Consideration of these issues will help determine the nature of the assets to be transferred into the asset protection structure and whether or not such structure can be based offshore. The importance of forward planning The principal objective of the client will be to protect assets against future legal action which may arise, for example, from his or a beneficiary's subsequent bankruptcy. Consequently the domestic laws against fraudulent transfers of property are of paramount importance. In most jurisdictions there are laws which operate to set aside transfers of property which are made with the intent to defraud creditors, and in many instances intent to defraud is deemed to occur where transfers of property are made within a specified period of time. For wealth protection planning to be effective it is essential that asset transfers are made well ahead of any potential creditor action, properly documented and placed in a legal environment which offers the utmost protection from potential attack. Selecting an international jurisdiction As most wealth protection plans will involve the use of an international trust, it is important that the selected jurisdiction have English common law as the foundation of its legal system. Civil law jurisdictions are generally not suitable for international wealth protection trusts. There are many legislative issues that need to be considered in selecting the international trust jurisdiction that offers the best wealth protection facilities. Please refer to our comparison of international trust jurisdictions for further information. More information To request further information on Asiaciti Trust's Heritage service, please click here. |