Monthly Archives: August 2016

What went wrong for Portcullis Trustnet in Labuan?

Portcullis Trustnet has had a presence across the Pacific and in various Asian financial centres, including in Malaysia. In fact, the Labuan branch pre-dates the the purchase of Trustnet by Kok Kong Chong, and involves a merger with Malaysian lawyer … Continue reading

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Portcullis, Trustnet, and Safeco Finance: Hong Kong, BVI, and Samoa

Portcullis Trustnet is a hybrid in the offshore world. Trustnet is an attenuated trust firm that went through a number of incarnations, beginning in the Cook Islands in the 1980s. It started off in the stable of a notorious New … Continue reading

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The Spanish connection to the South Pacific

This is a quick look at how some prominent Spanish citizens, and their families, have been using Mossack Fonseca for trusts and shell companies in the South Pacific. There is a now familiar New Zealand link, via the Orion Trust … Continue reading

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Equity Trust, the TMF Group, and the search for Global Unity’s pension funds

In this post I will be looking at the TMF Group, and who is behind it, but not so much what it does in New Zealand. It certainly has a branch office in Auckland, New Zealand. This will continue the … Continue reading

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Anchor and some Swiss Virtues: Fiduciaries or Frauds?

In this post I will be looking once again at Anchor Trustees, and some of their longstanding commercial relations with Swiss trust or fiduciary firms. We will see that they have connections with Panama, and also an Asian presence in … Continue reading

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Truvest, Anchor Trustees, and a dodgy Brazilian or two

Anchor Trustees is at the heart of the trust industry in New Zealand, and have been around since 1996. Their website states that they were pivotal in introducing STEP into New Zealand, which is an international organisation that apparently has … Continue reading

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Franco Croce: Geneva to Singapore to Auckland, via Panama

In this post I will be looking into an example of a Swiss firm that has a global outreach, and an Asian presence. I intend to be looking at a few of the trust companies that Asiaciti have on their … Continue reading

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