Email Article Print Article

Good Cocktail Party Fodder on Nevada Corporations and Obama.

By Rob Lambert - Email Editor

Date : June 26, 2008

My loyal readers know that I endeavor to keep you armed with all of the local Asset Protection related gossip.

It is my strong hunch that this bill has little to do with law enforcement and a lot to do with states like California trying to stop its residence from avoiding taxes by hiding behind some out of state entity like a Nevada Corporation.

I am going to lift a few facts from the press release announcing the bill. They lead me to believe that a lot of real criminals are not using U.S. entities to commit serious crimes.

At the very least, as the election approaches you will be better armed with some good cocktail party tidbits as well as insight into Obama’s personal view of the propriety of having the Federal Government regulate the behavior of the fifty states.

Here are the tidbits from the press release:

“Currently, nearly two million corporations and limited liability companies (LLCs) are formed within the United States each year. The states generally form these corporations without asking for the identity of the corporation's beneficial owners [note from Rob, this is not true in many cases].

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) reported that a Nevada-based corporation received more than 3,700 suspicious wire transfers totaling $81 million over 2 years. The case was not prosecuted, however, because ICE was unable to identify the corporation's owners. [Note from Rob, do you really believe that the ICE couldn’t identify the beneficial owners if they wanted?]

FinCEN found that, between April 1996 and January 2004, financial institutions filed 397 suspicious activity reports, involving a total of almost $4 billion in U.S. shell companies, East European countries, and U.S. bank accounts. [Note from Rob, doesn’t this small number surprise you?]

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) reported that U.S. shell companies are being used to launder as much as $36 billion from the former Soviet Union. The FBI also reported that they have 103 open cases investigating market manipulation, most of which involve U.S. shell companies.

The IRS described a scheme involving three individuals who set up U.S. shell companies to conceal nearly $9 million in taxable income in secret accounts in the Turks and Caicos Islands and other foreign countries.

DOJ reported that Russian officials used shell companies in Pennsylvania and Delaware to unlawfully divert $15 million in international aid intended to upgrade the safety of former Soviet nuclear power plants.

All 27 countries in the European Union are already required to obtain beneficial ownership information for the corporations they form.”

Remember my position regarding stealth: It helps but it must never be the key to any properly done Asset Protection Plan. In every case, the Plan should stand up assuming your “opponent” knows every detail of your planning. You must never depend on stealth or ever be put into a position where you are forced to lie.

Have a healthy and protected week.

Rob Lambert

RELATED ARTICLES:

• Protect the equity in your home
• Asset Protection Plans
• C.A.L.M. Introduction
• Get educated on Asset Protection