Panama: Stability, Proven Banking Secrecy and Strong Privacy Protection Laws… but somewhat lacking in Technology, Flexibility and Customer Service

Panama is a secure international banking jurisdiction with sophisticated services. We can open bank accounts for clients in Panama, without any need for you to travel here.

But there are certain reasons why for the majority of our clients we do not recommend Panamanian banks. That’s not to say we can’t do it. If you have your heart set on a Panamanian bank account, you can have one. But we need to explain a few things to you first.

Some of our competitors in Panama who don’t have such a global view as we do will try to convince you that if you don’t bank in Panama, your only alternative is some brass plate bank run by rum-swigging pirates on a hurricane-prone Caribbean island. Of course, that is not the truth. We work mainly with top flight European banks who are quite happy to open accounts for Panama corporations and foundations.

In many cases it is more convenient, more private, quicker and cheaper to take your Panama company or foundation and then open an account at a bank in another country. Let us give you some examples of why:

• The account opening process is complicated. Expect to provide a copy of your passport (that’s every page) certified by a Panamanian consulate or by apostille, plus at least 2-3 different references.
• Panamanian banks lag behind Europe on internet banking. Some Panama banks do not even have internet banking. Those that do, often don’t allow you to send international wires from your internet banking. Of those that do have international wire services available through internet banking, the charges are extremely high. HSBC, for example, charges US$ 75 per month for this service. That’s for the internet banking service, not any actual transactions.
• Panamanian banks are mainly dollar based and do not have sophisticated currency services. That is because they have always been dollar based and there has never been demand for much else. It is now relatively easy to open Euro accounts, and to a lesser extent British Pounds or Canadian dollars. But a Euro account in Panama will cost you a fortune to operate, when compared to European bank charges (think EUR 80 per transfer) If you want to operate in Swedish Kroner or Singapore Dollars, forget Panama. But you can do this easily by taking your Panama Corporation to a European bank.
• You cannot bank by mail in Panama. If you think Panama’s dollar based system would be convenient for handling dollar checks, think again, because Panama banks will not accept checks through the mail for deposit. Not even by Fedex. In fact, they might not even accept foreign checks at all! That leaves you having to Fedex checks to your Panama lawyer who will then send a messenger to deposit the checks in person. Needless to say this is complicated, slow, inefficient and risks clerical errors. With a European bank, you can just send your checks to the bank, and the bank will clear them for you.
• It is especially hard for US citizens to open Panama bank accounts. Again it is possible, but a large proportion of the major banks have a blanket ban on US citizens being signatories on any accounts. This is for political reasons. It’s actually a good thing, because it protects the integrity of the Panama bank secrecy laws against intrusions from Big Brother up north. But it’s rather inconvenient if you happen to be a US citizen.
• Panama banks are not known generally for their customer service. Unless you deposit literally millions, expect to wait in a long line to be attended in the bank. And contrary to what you might be told, most lower level bank staff in Panama do not speak English.
• Panama banks seem to have a regulatory phobia against giving any kind of plastic cards to foreigners. Again it is possible, but why should you have to beg for a simple ATM debit card like your kid can get at home?

Finally, it enhances your privacy to bank in a different jurisdiction. If someone tries to get information about your transactions, they have to look in two countries instead of one.

If you would like to open a Panama bank account after reading this, feel free to contact us. If you live in North America or Europe and the only reason you want to open a Panamanian bank account is that you want to stash your money away in a cool offshore hideaway, take a look at some of the alternative jurisdictions we offer like Cyprus or Uruguay.