Mar 17, 2020

Panamanian company with the shares to bearer and a corporate bank account in Antigua with the Global Bank of Commerce Ltd from 5,758.00 USD

Attention! Panama leaves three years of life for the shares to bearer

A law has been passed suspending the issuance and use of shares to bearer.

According to a press release from the National Assembly of Panama, on July 29, 2013, a law was passed aimed at withdrawing the shares to bearer from use. Within three years, shares to bearer must be replaced by the ordinary ones. The Government of Panama has thus complied with OECD recommendations to maintain international standards of tax transparency.

Owning a Panamanian company with the shares to bearer, together with a corporate account in the best bank of the island nation of Antigua and Barbuda, the Global Bank of Commerce Ltd, is a perfect solution for incorporating your business in the Caribbean.

Panama is an offshore jurisdiction that offers excellent conditions for starting your business and continue ding it on a global level. In addition, Panama is the way out in the current situation when Europe and Russia are on the path of deoffshorization. Our team decided to find solutions to this problem and located a number of banks that are ready to work with the companies that own shares to bearer and do not require the storage of shares in their bank cells. If you have already decided that you want to set a company in Panama with the shares to bearer and open a corporate bank account in Antigua, please apply for a fast and comprehensive advice on the matter emailing to [email protected].

Of course, the shares to bearer many drawbacks which we surely need to take into account, but they also have their advantages that are worth mentioning:

  1. Confidential ownership of a company in Panama and all of its assets;
  2. No additional cost to maintain confidentiality, for example compared to the issuance of shares to the registered shareholders;
  3. Possibility to prove your ownership right at the moment when it is necessary (when working with banks, in litigation, etc.);
  4. Easiness and promptness of transferring your company and it assets by means of a simple transfer of the allotment certificates (without consequential registers);
  5. Simple holding of a share does not mean you own this share until you have brought it forward as a shareholder.

You can find more information on shares to bearer in the article called Shares to Bearer, the Offshore Confidentiality Price.

You should also understand that 95% of the world’s banking institutions do not open corporate bank accounts for companies with the shares to bearer. The banks ready to take this risk will be checking very closely if this company is a personal holding not involved in some pro-active and unclear operations.

Panama is a modern stable jurisdiction that attracts clients with its preferential taxation. Many countries around the world accept Panama as a legitimate jurisdiction and remove it from their offshore blacklists. Taxation in Panama is based on a territorial principle. First of all, it implies that all income that does not originate from Panama is not taxed in Panama.

For example, income tax in Panama is paid only by the local companies and employees hired by the Panamanian resident companies making profits in Panama. And the rate of such taxes as inheritance tax or wealth tax is 0%.

Without going into much detail, Panama also offers the following:

  • it is allowed to issue shares to bearer;
  • shares can be paid in any currency;
  • no requirements to the share capital minimum size;
  • shareholder meetings and boards of directors can be held anywhere in the world;
  • no need to hold annual meetings of the boards of directors and shareholder meetings;
  • territorial principle of taxation;
  • a law on maintaining confidentiality of corporate information;
  • no seal is required;
  • no strict accounting requirements: your accounts book can be held in any country of the world, kept in any form acceptable to the owners and in any language;
  • if a company does not operate in Panama, it must not file any financial or other reports with the Panamanian authorities, except in the event of the company liquidation.

Read more about Panama and doing business in this country in our portal offshore-pro.com:

Best Tax Haven, Panama

Offshore Jurisdiction of Panama

The Whole Truth About Panama’s Offshore Financial Sector

Together with the company registration with shares to bearer in Panama, we offer you the opening of a corporate account with the Global Bank of Commerce Ltd.

The Global Bank of Commerce Ltd was established in 1983. The bank’s long history proves the accumulated knowledge, experience and professionalism of this financial institution. The Global Bank of Commerce was the first bank to obtain a banking license in Antigua and Barbuda under the International Business Corporations Act of 1982. And today, the Global Bank of Commerce has the honor of being one of the pioneers of the international financial services in the financial center of the jurisdiction of Antigua and Barbuda.

The bank operates internationally, attracting investors and businessmen from all over the world. Thanks to its favorable service, many businessmen choose to work specifically with the Global Bank of Commerce.

The Global Bank of Commerce attracts its clients thanks to a wide range of diverse banking services, such as:

  • Accounts that generate interest income in USD, EURO, GBP and CAD;
  • A modern set of investment products managed by its Investment Department, GBC Wealth Management Ltd;
  • E-commerce platform;
  • An international team of dedicated and professional executives with extensive experience in international banking;
  • Globex Secure online banking system.

Bank service rates

Services Fees

 

 
Personal Accounts $3.00 monthly
Business/Corporate Accounts $10.00 monthly
E-Commerce Merchant Account $100.00 monthly

 

Min. Balance Deficiency Fees

 

   
Account Type Min. Bal. Fees
Current $5,000.00 $20 monthly
Money Market $20,000.00 $50 Quarterly
Classic Savings $200.00 $10 monthly
Gold Savings $1,000.00 $50 Quarterly
Gold Bond $25,000.00 $5 monthly

For more information please see our portal offshore-pro.com:

The Global Bank of Commerce is the best partner for your business in Antigua and Barbuda.

Instructions for registering a company with shares to bearer in Panama:

  1. The first and main step is your intention to register a company with shares to bearer in Panama with an account with the Global Bank of Commerce. Please contact us by email to [email protected]. This e-mail address is protected from spam bots, so you will have to enable Javascript to view it to obtain professional advice on getting your company incorporated and on opening a bank account. Afterwards, we will sign an agreement on the consulting services provided to you resulting in incorporating your company with shares to bearer in Panama and opening a corporate bank account with the Global Bank of Commerce.
  2. In accordance with the service agreement, you will need to pay a commission for the services provided and the assistance in registering your company in Panama and in opening your corporate bank account with the Global Bank of Commerce, which you can do with a card, via PayPal, Western Union, WebMoney, or make a banking transaction. The commission is 5,758.00 USD.
  3. Now we move on to collecting the information necessary to register a Panamanian company with shares to bearer. For this you will need to present us the following documents:

Application for registration of the Panamanian company with the company name: you will need to present us several options of the company names which, in your opinion, are the most suitable and worthy for your Panamanian stock company. Company names in Panama may be given in any language using Latin alphabet. The companies register may request a Spanish or English translation of the name.

Also, when choosing a name for your company in Panama, you should keep in mind that it is not allowed to use the names that are similar or completely identical to the names of existing companies, as well as the names that are similar to the well-known companies or names that imply government patronage.

And the words in the name such as bank, building society, savings, insurance, assurance, reinsurance, fund management, investment fund, trust or their equivalents in a foreign language require certain licenses.

Company’s registered address: the company’s address may be located both in Panama and abroad. The package provides a good address in the center of Panama City.

Brief description of the company’s business activities: you should describe the activities of your company. The description should be clear and understandable. For example, trade (retail, wholesale), service delivery (specify which services), investments, etc.

Responsibility of the company’s members;

Size of the company’s share capital at incorporation: Panama has no requirements to the share capital minimum size. But as a rule, the standard size is a share capital of 10,000.00 USD. There is no requirement to pay the registered capital;

Number of shares to bearer owned by the company founders: the minimum number of shares is one. Shares to bearer must be fully paid before their issuance;

Details of the company’s shareholders, directors and secretary;

Non-resident shareholders and directors of the Panamanian company must present:

—  notarized copy of their travel passports: if you do not have this document, you should get it issued it for the successful registration of a Panamanian company with shares to bearer and opening a corporate account with the Global Bank of Commerce.

Note: It is possible that the notary may say they do not certify copies of the travel passports. In this case, make a Spanish translation, sew it to the original copy at the sworn translator’s and get it notarized.

— proofs of residence (utility bills)

Note: This document must be no older than 2 months by the time the registration package is submitted, and must be translated into English and notarized. Or it can be a notarized translation of your civil passport into English (the main page with the photo and your signature, as well as the address page).

For corporate shareholders (legal entities) and directors of a Panamanian company:

—  copies of the parent company’s incorporation documents such as the Certificate of Incorporation, the Memorandum and Articles of Association, and so on.

Note: Any and all documents must be presented with their notarized English translations.

A company registered in Panama must have:

  • one company director;
  • one financial director;
  • one company secretary.

Directors of Panamanian companies may be non-residents. Both individuals and legal entities can be appointed directors of Panamanian companies. However, when a legal entity is used as a director to a Panamanian company with  shares to bearer, all corporate documents are to be made public. In this regard, we recommend that companies be registered using nominee persons.

Company reporting requirements

Panama does not require annual reporting and auditing if the company does not operate in Panama. There is also no need to hold annual shareholder meetings, but if necessary, they can be held anywhere in the world.

Working with the Agent

Under Panamanian law, each company must have its own agent. The agent must be a resident of Panama who resides permanently in Panama as an individual. The State Register informs company owners about any changes in the law, etc. via the Company Agent only.

  1. Next, it will be necessary to draw up the Memorandum of Association in an official form or to get it notarized and submit it for registration with the State Register having payed a state fee of 60.20 USD (if the shared capital is 10,000.00 USD). Any activity of the company will not have legal force against third parties until the Memorandum is registered.

The Panamanian law allows for the drawing up of the Memorandum outside the Republic of Panama, but in this case you will need to get it certified with the Consul of Panama and provide a formally certified Spanish translation.

  1. After completing the company’s incorporation process in Panama, we will send you a package of original documents to your address specified by courier mail, or we will hand these papers over to you in person during your visit to Panama.

Note: payment for courier mail services to be paid by you separately, according to the rates of the courier company.

  1. Company maintenance rates in Panama:
Fee for the company’s annual renewal
·         State duty

·         Registration agent services

·         Registered office (legal address)

·         Annual pay of nominees: 3 nominee directors and one nominee shareholder

$9545

 

Extra services in Panama (both for Panamanian and foreign companies)
Courier delivery (around the world) $200
Notarization per one document (up to 5 pages) $255
Apostille per document (international certification) $270
Manufacturing of rubber seal $180
Panamanian nominee director for any foreign or classical offshore company (an individual) per one nominee including the ID copies and utility bills $1350
Letter of attorney, certified (our standard text in English or Spanish, or a text provided by the client in any language) $200
Notarized letter of attorney $400
Notarized letter of attorney with an apostille $600
Declaration of trust property (trust declaration), certified $240
Declaration of trust property (trust declaration), notarized $420
Declaration of trust property (trust declaration), notarized and apostilled $480
Nominee’s signature, 1st document $150
Nominee’s signature for the 2nd and subsequent documents in the same order $225
Copies of the set of documents with notarization (complete set; please specify what documents should be included in the set) $450
Copy of any individual document with notarization $225
Extra payment for apostille of certified documents $270
Copies of a set of documents with the certification of our Panamanian office (complete set; please specify what documents should be included in the set) $600
Copy of any individual document certified by the Registration Agent $225
Certificate of Good Standing, certified by the Registration Agent (suitable for opening accounts in Caribbean banks) $300
Extract from the Register of Enterprises with apostille $450
Certificate of Incumbency, issued by the Registration Agent $270
Certificate of Incumbency issued by the Registration Agent, notarized $360
Service of the virtual office $3,000.00 per year
Legal address $5,000.00 per year

For more information please see our portal offshore-pro.com:

The real registration period for a company in Panama will be 12 to 14 working days including the documents notarizing and certification.

  1. To start the process of opening a corporate account with the Global Bank of Commerce you need to submit the following documents:
  • Notarized copies of the travel passports of the company’s beneficiaries and directors;
  • Proofs of residence (utility bills);
  • Bank Certificate (A certificate provided by your bank must confirm the information that you have been working with this bank for at least one year from the date of application). If you cannot present the bank certificate, then you may provide two professional references about you;
  • Filled and signed bank forms for account opening;
  • Package of notarized corporate documents (which you will receive from your Registration Agent);

These documents do not require apostilles.

The bank can only provide communication with the client in English or Spanish.

Please note that the minimum balance in the account is USD 5,000.00 USD.

The Global Bank of Commerce corporate account opening timeframe

The bank will open your corporate account within 1 workday upon receipt of all the original documents of your company registered in Panama in digital and hard copies.

Bank service rates

Services Fees

 

 
Personal Accounts $3.00 monthly
Business/Corporate Accounts $10.00 monthly
E-Commerce Merchant Account $100.00 monthly

 

Min. Balance Deficiency Fees

 

   
Account Type Min. Bal. Fees
Current $5,000.00 $20 monthly
Money Market $20,000.00 $50 Quarterly
Classic Savings $200.00 $10 monthly
Gold Savings $1,000.00 $50 Quarterly
Gold Bond $25,000.00 $5 monthly

To start working via a company in Panama with shares to bearer, we recommend working with the bank Global Bank of Commerce. This will allow you to pro-actively operate your assets and use a variety of investment products of the bank for your business development. Our contact: [email protected]. Write to us, and we will certainly create for you a great business duo of a newly incorporated company in Panama with shares to bearer and a bank account in with the Global Bank of Commerce.

Financial reports for offshore companies in Panama become mandatory.