Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Offshore Banking in Dubai


Dubai is one of the ideal places to set up a business or to look for individual business opportunities. If you are planning either of these, then you may have to open a bank account in Dubai for your transaction needs. Unlike most other countries, it is a simple procedure in Dubai. All you need are a few documents and proofs.
Operating an offshore bank account is simply carrying out your banking activities in a location other than the one in which you live. Individual and corporate account holders may have different reasons for opening an offshore bank account .Most general and popular reasons being tax saving requirements and multi currency loan requirements.
Another common reason for operating and offshore bank account is the flexibility that accompanies such an account and expatriates can benefit in a huge way from an offshore bank account as allows them to manage their international financial commitments easily. The latest free zone, Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) is flexible and unlimited offshore banking will become much easier.
Many large banks have offices in Dubai .All the banking activities in Dubai are regulated by UAE Central Bank and they impose many restrictions on foreign banks. Some of the restrictions are
a) Foreign banks are not allowed to have more than 8 branches
b) Any commercial bank operating in Dubai must have capital available of at least Dh 40 million. .
As the DIFC free trade zone will be governed by an independent regulatory authority, it assures financial sector organizations, more legal independence and fewer trade restrictions will be implemented on banking and financial institutions. Many financial institutions are to be granted licenses to trade within the zone and the DIFC will attract many companies in the financial sectors worldwide to promote offshore banking.
The offshore banking facilities in Dubai free zones have comprehensive laws to ensure transparency and to avoid money laundering .The laws also cover international economy compliance factors .The free trade zone is basically being designed to allow financial institutions to work and grow without limitations and restrictions such as taxation burdens, reporting requirements and stringent laws and rules.  The offshore banking sector in Dubai has already seen a growth in bank deposits following the introduction of the EU Savings Tax Directive. Many of the more traditional offshore centers do not offer many incentives to the banking sector as much as in Dubai .So it is becoming one of the most popular destinations for offshore banking.

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