Create a Trust
Table of Contents
Motivation
The raid on Cyprus’ depositors in March 2013 precipitated our trustee service to the public.
Historical capital levies of the world
There are recorded capital levies by the ancient Greeks ranging from 1% to 4%.
There are no recorded (read “legal”) capital levies before Word War I.
| Date | Country | Type of asset | Rate |
| 1919 | Germany | Real estate | from 10% to 65% |
| 1920 | Italy | Real estate | from 4.50% to 50% |
| 1920 | Czechoslovakia | Real estate | from 3% to 40% |
| 1921 | Hungary | Real estate | from 5% to 20% |
| 1946 | Japan | Real estate | from 10% to 90% |
| 1990 | Brazil | Financial (bank deposits) | 100% from US$1,250 |
| 1992 | Italy | Financial (bank deposits) | 0.6% |
| 2001 | Argentina | Financial (deposits in foreign currencies) | 100% |
| 2008 | Argentina | Financial (pensions) | 100% |
| 2009 | Ireland | Financial (funded public pension fund) | 25% |
| 2010 | Ireland | Financial (funded public pension fund) | 12% |
| 2010 | Hungary | Financial (private pensions) | 100% (nationalization)1 |
| 2013 | Cyprus | Financial (bank deposits) | 100% over 100,000 EUR, affecting 2 banks |
| 2019 | Lebanon | Financial (bank deposits) | 100% of foreign currencies. Freezing is still ongoing today. |
Overview of legal bank guarantees
| Entity | Deposit guarantee | Foreign currency covered |
| EU2 | 100,000 EUR (or equivalent for non-Eurozone countries) | No |
| Isle of Man | £50,000 for indiviuals and £20,000 for entities.3 | Yes |
| Channel Islands (Jersey and Guernsey) | £50,000 per person, per banking groups4 | Yes |
| USA5 | US$250,000 | No |
| Palau | US$250,000 (from FDIC USA) | No |
| Micronesia | US$250,000 (from FDIC USA) | No |
| Marshall Islands | US$250,000 (from FDIC USA) | No |
| Japan | JPY 10,000,000 | No |
| Thailand | THB 1,000,000 | No |
| Malaysia | MYR 250,000 | Yes |
| Taiwan | TWD$3,000,000 | Yes |
| Hong Kong | HKD 500,000 | Yes |
| Lebanon | LBP 5,000,000 (US$3,316 before 2019, down to US$200 as of the 1st January 2022 due to the exchange rate). In reality: it is just zero! | No |
Trend of public confidence in the US
Our solution: a trust
Although the legal bank guarantees provide some kind of safety net, they are unfunded in case of a systemic crisis6.
The trust is a wonderful invention that gives a legal structure for:
- fast set-up: usually in 2 business days
- flexibility: you can make up any possible rules of management, settlement, investment, events, etc…
Which jurisdiction?
The choice of the jurisdiction will be done by the Trustee(s) which we provide.
Our fees
See the Fees page.
Type of trusts offered
We do NOT offer land or real estate trusts. However the land can be held by a company whose shares will be held by the trust.
All of our trusts can be revocable or irrevocable.
Period of the trust: from 2 years minimum to perpetuity.
- Beneficiary trust
- Purpose trust, such as:
- Charitable
- Political
- The erection and maintenance of tombs and monuments
Type of investments covered
- Any major currencies (no cash)
- Irish bonds
- Gold (physical or not)
- Unit trusts/Mutual funds
- Shares of companies
- Digital assets (domain names, websites, etc)
Next step
Contact us to discuss your trust requirements.
Notes
- https://blogs.wsj.com/emergingeurope/2010/11/24/hungary-forces-private-pension-fund-members-back-to-state-scheme/
- Including Gibraltar, and all French Overseas possessions
- https://www.iomfsa.im/consumer-material/isle-of-man-depositors-compensation-scheme-dcs/
- https://www.gov.je/Industry/Finance/DepositProtection/Pages/Overview.aspx
- Including Overseas possessions: American Samoa, US Virgin Islands, Mariana Islands (Guam, Saipan)
- see Iceland, 2008