Offshoring and Financial Markets1
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
150 ФиНаНсы региоНа economics. All-Russian tuition by correspondence financial-economics of the institute. Proceedings for the Doctor of Economics]. Moscow, 24. 5. Menhsikova М. А., Menshikov S. M. (Ed.) (1983). Angliyskie ekonomicheskie terminy. Spravochnik. Otv. redaktor doctor ekonomicheskikh nauk S.M. Menhsikov [English economic terms. Reference book. Under red. S. M. Mensikov’s]. Nauka Publ., Sibirskoe otdelenie [Siberian department], Novosibirsk, 262. 6. Polotskiy A. Velikobritaniya stanet liderom evropeyskoy integratchii vmesto Germanii [Great Britain has been a leader of European integration instead of Germany]. Available at: http://www. rbcdaily.ru/downloan/08.26 (date of access: 02.01.2014). 7. Raizberg B. A., Lozovskiy L. Sh, Starodubtcheva Ye. B. (2012). Sovremenniy ekonomicheskiy slovar. [Modern economic dictionary]. Moscow, Infra-M Publ., 495. 8. Lekhin I. V. (Ed.), Petrov F. N. (Ed.) (1949). Slovar inostrannikh slov [Vocabulary of foreign words] 3-e pererab. i dop. izdanie [3d revised and enlarged edition]. Gosizdatelstvo inostrannih i natcionalnikh slovarey [State Publishing house foreign]. Moscow, 806. 9. Tarannikova A., Mitrofanov P. (2013). Napolnit ifrastrukturu soderzhaniem [Fill infrastrakchural with a content]. Expert, 40 (870). (7-13 of October), 140-149. Information about the author Maslennikov Mikhail Ivanovich (Yekaterinburg, Russia) — Doctor of Economics, Professor, the Institute of Economics of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (29, Моscovskaya st., Yekaterinburg, 620014, e-mail: [email protected]). G. Battisti OFFSHORING AND FINANCIAL MARKETS1 The paper analyses the nature and extent of the offshore world, a grey area that is playing a major role in present-day economy. The main institutions moulding this peculiar environment are discussed: preferen- tial tax regimes, tax havens and offshore financial centers. Their role in the globalised world is outlined af- ter a scrutiny of the specialized literature, reports by non-governmental bodies and companies’ advertisings. Finally, we present a tentative reconstruction of its geographical organization, inclusive of cartographic rep- resentations of the main international networks. Keywords: financialization, financial centres, financial space, offshore, tax haven, post industrial economy, British empire. Introduction ing the 19th and 20th centuries (Thünen, Weber, During the 20th century all economic struc- Christaller), despite their updating (Berry, Hoover, tures had to face the impact of two epochal phe- Alonso etc.) are no longer suitable to understand nomena, the communication’s revolution and the the present-day economic landscape. financialization of the economy. As a consequence At the same time, it appears of primary impor- of the never-ending technological progress, the tance to define a model of financial space, shaped former has repeatedly reduced the friction of dis- by the intertwining of capital movements, as a sort tance, provoking a radical change in the map of of virtual reality largely superordinated to the real locational advantages. The result has been a new economic world, the latter receiving from the for- model of international distribution of production mer the impulses that command the geographi- that projected its effects to the core of business cal distribution of productions. Obviously in the management, triggering a disintegration of pro- frame of a globalised economy the geographical duction cycles in contrast with the integrative range to be considered is the whole of our planet. pattern typical of the first industrial revolution. Following the postulates at the basis of the The latter phenomenon, strictly linked to the isotropic space, where we must arrange both ho- first one, apparently regards only the tertiary sec- mogeneous and heterogeneous phenomena, var- tor, but in reality it is becoming the driving force ious approaches are available. In fact, we may be- that influences, directly or in indirectly, a grow- gin studying: a) the areas considered homoge- ing share of corporates. It follows that the reas- neous according to some parameters concerning suring models of spatial economy theorized dur- the capital market; b) the “strong points” (repre- senting concentrations of financial capital); c) the 1 © Battisti G. Text. 2014. “discontinuity faults”; d) the capital flows. In the ЭКОНОМИКА РЕГИОНА № 2 (2014) G. Battisti 151 present work, that is part of a wider effort to for- The list, though concise, undoubtedly reveals malize the subject, we will focus on a peculiar type that in the essence the aims mentioned to the po- of discontinuity, produced by the enforcement of tential clients are tax avoidance and evasion to- preferential tax regimes, including the so-called wards all states. “tax havens.” To the man in the street, this is possible thanks In the economics domain, tax havens are the to the so-called tax havens, but the phenomenon tantamount to black holes in astrophysics. This is actually widely diffused. In the globalised world latter swallow matter and eject energy and wa- all countries are competing, each of them to man- ter. What the two concepts have in common is a age the factor of production par excellence: capi- deep transformation of the input and the capacity tal. To this purpose they equip themselves to be- to modify the surrounding environment, changing come attractive towards all foreign residents who its architecture and the way it works. are looking for new ways to increase their wealth. With the emergence of the financial crisis in As a consequence, this praxis is involving, to vary- 2007-2008, the subject of tax havens and the re- ing degrees, almost all countries. lated institutions has been attracting growing “As terms, the words offshore business and off- attention from the governments of the leading shore company have no precise legal, tax or gen- Western economies. It stimulates the economic eral business meaning, as the word offshore often geographer to fill the academic gap and make the means nothing more than anywhere other than subject more readable. the place of physical location of the person us- ing it (i.e. overseas). Many companies are incorpo- The nature of the offshore world rated in the many onshore countries, which have n the present international system, any- tax regimes that are by statute tax advantageous body can promote a company abroad and oper- for specific international purposes (...). The word ate through it not only in another state but world- offshore is more complex than the black-and- wide. To this purpose, any jurisdiction located white tax world inhabited by the media. Offshore outside the state of residence is considered off- business consists not only of tax havens but also shore as regards the jurisdiction internationally of onshore high tax countries fiercely competing recognized where the actor takes up his official to attract international companies and individu- residence. This means that the whole world is off- als with all manner of tax planning, regulations shore to any state, offshore becoming a synonym and opportunities. So today the offshore world in- of the foreign jurisdiction. cludes structures domiciled in high tax onshore In the past, only the economic elite could af- countries as different as the U.K., Portugal Austria, ford to operate abroad, thanks to the consensus of Switzerland and the Netherlands.” [2]. the political authority. Such activity used to be the A glance at the conditions offered by Great bulwark of banking and finance companies that Britain is enlightening. Here the final burden is specialized in the transfer of capitals. Nowadays, generally lower than elsewhere and many taxes owing to the generalized growth of wealth this ca- and fees simply do not exist. In the U.K. one can pacity has been spreading to an ever-enlarging so- incorporate a limited liability company, ready to cial group. As the advertising of a company spe- perform whatever activity also on the interna- cialized in enabling these activities reads: “With tional market in just three working days. To fur- a moderate cost and new rules common business- ther reduce the technical time required, ready- men and professionals can avail themselves of made companies are available, incorporated six offshore strategies to protect their business, their months to two years in advance. That is, a market properties and exploit their advantages” [1]. of empty shells. Why do they do it? The company’s website is One wonders which kind of urgency would jus- explicit: to benefit from tify the need to avail oneself of a ready-made com- — low tax and fees requirements with reduced pany in one day. Perhaps, to take part in an ex- and controlled charges; piring competitive tender? Or to put a sum of hot — protection of savings and real estates; money safely away? As for the details, one learns — minimal formalities for the company’s man- that keeping company accounts is not compulsory agement and bookkeeping; when the turnover is less than GBP 350,000. At the — strict protection of the bank secrecy; end of the fiscal year one has just to file a copy of — favourable rules for the setting up of finan- the Annual Returns to the Register of Companies cial services; in Cardiff. The VAT number is not compulsory for — possibility to issue anonymous bearer turnovers less than GBP 55,000. The Corporation/ shares. Company Tax Return is to be filed only by those ЭКОНОМИКА РЕГИОНА № 2 (2014) 152 ФиНаНсы региоНа with a regular activity. Dormant accounts have This is the architecture of multinationals, only to file an informal return to the Inland which this way combine the advantages obtained Revenue every year. These are regulations clearly from the different locations. The nature of these written for dummy companies. advantages allows us to distinguish meaningful Another noteworthy jurisdiction as for com- categories of countries (or jurisdictions) according pany regulation is Delaware. A member state of to their prevailing economic function. In this re- the American Union, it hosts 40% of the compa- spect, the mentioning of “favourable regulations nies listed in the New York Stock Exchange.