Competition to Attract Business

Like all businesses with attractive profit opportunities, offshore havens must compete with each other to attract a volume of banking and financial services clients. This was not always the case. Only twenty years ago a few well-known centers such as the Bahamas, Bermuda, the Cayman Islands, and Switzerland were the predominant service providers in this area.

Within the last ten years, many new countries have developed the necessary package of banking services and asset protection products. There are now a significant number of countries seeking this business, and competition is fierce. Successful countries attract this business with some or all of the traditional techniques: better service, innovative products, favorable laws and regulations, and competitive prices. When a particular country develops a financial product that satisfies a wide demand, it may leapfrog over its competitors to the top ranks of the financial centers.