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FATCA compliance issues won’t just get the IRS on your back. You also have to deal with the US department of treasury. The US treasury is not handicapped by re

FATCA compliance issues won’t just get the IRS on your back. You also have to deal with the US department of treasury. The US treasury is not handicapped by regulation in the same way the IRS is. We’re talking extradition and jail time, not just having to pay back taxes. The Venn diagram of banks where you’d feel safe storing millions of dollars and that would also be willing to help you defraud the US Treasury are exceedingly small. It’s just not practical.

Retric 6y ago
> The Venn diagram of banks where you’d feel safe storing millions of dollars and that would also be willing to help you defraud the US Treasury are exceedingly small. It’s just not practical. You only need 1. However, the solution isn’t to move money from your account to a bank which then hides what’s going in from the US government. The solution is to make a terrible investment say buying land from Bob for 10 million only to sell it to Sally for 5 million. Meanwhile an associate of Bob, Sally, or both moves 4 million to a holding company owned by you. That gets 4 million in a secret account, let’s you offset capital 5 million in capital gains, and pays 1 million for money laundering. Repeat as needed. Sure, 4 million in a hidden account is less useful day to day, but it’s insurance if you need to flee the country or happened to go bankrupt etc.
- dismantlethesun 6y ago
  Your amounts are laughably low for the person who sparked this topic of discussion. Eric Schmidt has $14.2 billion dollars. 4 million in a stash account is nothing more than weekend vacation money. Let's be honest, for most people hiding your money from the government, just means you can't access it anymore---which makes it essentially useless to you. For the current day mega-rich, they don't have any ties to the maffia, or other shady operations that would incentivize them having black-money funds. Re-invest your money for low taxes, pay your taxes, and you will still be a billionaire next year, and won't have to every worry about black helicopters snatching you from your yacht.
  - Retric 6y ago
    As I said repeat as needed, some people move billions using such methods over time. And yea, doing this to money isn’t as useful day to day again as I pointed out, but that’s not what it’s for. We are talking insurance not tax evasion. It’s a mistake to think of Money as a fungible assets without any distinguishing characteristics. Set aside 10% in ultra safe investments and your protected from market crashes but not the government freezing your assets, bankruptcy, or your ex wife taking you to the cleaners. Schmidt would be a fool not to set aside ~50 million in some hidden accounts specifically because it’s a small enough amount as to be meaningless today, but plenty of money to hide out comfortably in a non extradition country.
- netsharc 6y ago
  > The solution is to make a terrible investment say buying land from Bob for 10 million only to sell it to Sally for 5 million. Or if you're Russian, a condo in Trump Tower, NY...
michaelrosmer 6y ago
FATCA doesn't create tax obligations it has nothing intrinsically to do with tax it has to do with financial transparency, which yes can help to catch people who are evading tax but if you're structuring your affairs legally FATCA has no impact on your taxes.

Retric 6y ago

> The Venn diagram of banks where you’d feel safe storing millions of dollars and that would also be willing to help you defraud the US Treasury are exceedingly small. It’s just not practical. You only need 1. However, the solution isn’t to move money from your account to a bank which then hides what’s going in from the US government. The solution is to make a terrible investment say buying land from Bob for 10 million only to sell it to Sally for 5 million. Meanwhile an associate of Bob, Sally, or both moves 4 million to a holding company owned by you. That gets 4 million in a secret account, let’s you offset capital 5 million in capital gains, and pays 1 million for money laundering. Repeat as needed. Sure, 4 million in a hidden account is less useful day to day, but it’s insurance if you need to flee the country or happened to go bankrupt etc.

dismantlethesun 6y ago
Your amounts are laughably low for the person who sparked this topic of discussion. Eric Schmidt has $14.2 billion dollars. 4 million in a stash account is nothing more than weekend vacation money. Let's be honest, for most people hiding your money from the government, just means you can't access it anymore---which makes it essentially useless to you. For the current day mega-rich, they don't have any ties to the maffia, or other shady operations that would incentivize them having black-money funds. Re-invest your money for low taxes, pay your taxes, and you will still be a billionaire next year, and won't have to every worry about black helicopters snatching you from your yacht.
- Retric 6y ago
  As I said repeat as needed, some people move billions using such methods over time. And yea, doing this to money isn’t as useful day to day again as I pointed out, but that’s not what it’s for. We are talking insurance not tax evasion. It’s a mistake to think of Money as a fungible assets without any distinguishing characteristics. Set aside 10% in ultra safe investments and your protected from market crashes but not the government freezing your assets, bankruptcy, or your ex wife taking you to the cleaners. Schmidt would be a fool not to set aside ~50 million in some hidden accounts specifically because it’s a small enough amount as to be meaningless today, but plenty of money to hide out comfortably in a non extradition country.
netsharc 6y ago
> The solution is to make a terrible investment say buying land from Bob for 10 million only to sell it to Sally for 5 million. Or if you're Russian, a condo in Trump Tower, NY...

michaelrosmer 6y ago

FATCA doesn't create tax obligations it has nothing intrinsically to do with tax it has to do with financial transparency, which yes can help to catch people who are evading tax but if you're structuring your affairs legally FATCA has no impact on your taxes.