Fiduciary Specialists
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Trusts
Companies
Foundations
Escrow Services
As a specialist firm of fiduciary services, our clients require dynamic tailored solutions. At Salix we strive to deliver excellence and professionalism to our clients in a proactive way at a competitive price with effective, efficient and enduring structures.
Our service offering is designed to give a choice of solutions that will best suit our clients needs. We look at every new case as a challenge to advise our clients in a comprehensive way with no preconceived solutions. Our wealth of experience across both the civil law and common law arenas allows us to best advise our clients.
We are a fiduciary who is used to dealing with a challenging array of asset classes and will endeavour to work with the clients and their advisors to deliver their ideal solution through our services and those of our network.
Trusts
A discretionary trust is a trust where the beneficiaries and or their entitlements to the trust fund are determined by the criteria set out in the trust instrument (deed) by the settlor.
The trust is discretionary in two respects, first, the trustees decide who within the class of beneficiaries will benefit and secondly, the trustees decide the amount by which the beneficiary will benefit.
In this type of trust it is usual for the settlor to give to the trustees a letter or memorandum of wishes by which the trustees will be guided. The letters of wishes are not legally binding documents but are very helpful to the trustees when making their discretionary decisions.
Companies
There are many uses for companies in the commercial and private financial industries and some of the main uses that we offer our service for are:
Real estate holding
There can be many advantages by owning both commercial and residential property through a domestic and or offshore company. Benefits can include the avoidance of capital gains and inheritance taxes and potentially land stamp duty on the sale of property.
Investment holding
Offshore companies are often used to hold investment portfolios managed by banks and professional investment firms.
Trading
International trading companies are often incorporated in low tax or no tax jurisdictions to be used to shelter profits generated between buyer and seller.
Tax Treaty companies
Companies are often established in certain jurisdictions to make use of double tax treaty jurisdictions in order to mitigate or avoid withholding taxes, income tax or capital gains taxes and potentially other taxes as well.
Asset holding companies
Offshore companies are often used to hold non bankable assets such as yachts, aircraft, artworks and potentially intellectual property.
Foundations
Unlike a corporation, a foundation has no members but does have beneficiaries who are entitled to enjoy the foundation assets and/or income according to the will of the founder and/or the foundation charter.
The foundation is a very commonly used vehicle in most civil law jurisdictions for charitable purposes. Whilst in the majority of countries that have introduced laws on foundations, the scope is limited to the benefit of the general public, however, some jurisdictions have particularly regulated the creation of foundations for private benefit.
Such private-benefit foundations often allow for a continued commitment of the founder who can retain broad powers over the foundation. Amongst others, he founder may retain the right to revoke the foundation and can be appointed as a beneficiary. Depending on the founder's intentions and planning requirements, a private-benefit foundation can also be set up in a way that the founder has no powers whatsoever over it, thereby conferring the administrative powers to the foundation council in a discretionary manner.
We offer advisory and administration services in connection with both charitable and private-benefit foundations to our clients and help them to choose the most suitable jurisdiction.
A foundation is a legal entity in its own rights and is generally created by endowment of funds for a specific purpose, thereby legally separating the foundation's assets from its founder's wealth.
Escrow Services
General concept of an Escrow Agreement
Where ever two or more parties enter into any financial agreement, they may use the services of an entrusted third party (the Escrow Agent) to ensure safekeeping of certain assets until some specific event triggers the release of those assets, thereby assuring independent adherence to the exact terms of the Escrow Agreement.