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One of the questions we often receive from readers is “What country does not have a tax information exchange treaty (TIEA) with Country X?”

In other words, many people have been rather freaked out by recent developments such as Swiss and Panamanian banking information exchange agreements with the US and the UK. They are naturally looking for the best offshore banks in jurisdictions that have still not signed any information exchange treaties with major countries.

My standard response is that, while there are some of these countries (Andorra, for example, has not signed up to any information exchange with the US or the UK and doesn’t show any sign of doing so in the short term), jumping from bank to bank, jurisdiction to jurisdiction as rules change is becoming an ever more hopeless task. Yes, you can move once or twice – but the trend is definitely away from secrecy. Each time you change bank, you also put your privacy at risk. It’s much better to adapt your strategy and live within the system, while choosing a private, offshore bank that has its wits about it and values its international clientele.

The news is not all bad. There are still lots of ways to keep your affairs under the radar within the system. Most people I talk to these days, while they are committed to the idea of privacy as a fundamental principle, are much more concerned about asset protection and diversifying their investments. These are the themes we cover in The Q Wealth Report members’ area. Why go offshore? Tax evasion, as I’ve often stated, is not a good reason to go offshore today.

There’s one country I know of, however, that is really off the radar when it comes to offshore banking. You can open multi currency bank accounts here, and get full internet banking – including of course the chance to send multi-currency international bank wires online. US citizens are very welcome. And everything can be set up by mail, with no need to travel there.

This country, I should warn you, is in Africa. Some people lose interest right there, but I think that is a mistake. This is actually an important gold producing nation, so not surprisingly, it’s doing well at the moment. If you think gold will keep going up in dollar terms (I do) then this country will continue to prosper. The bank I recommend there, to consulting clients, is actually based in Europe and owns a gold refinery.

The country I’m talking about is Tanzania. Here are some of the reasons I like it as a private banking haven:

• The Chinese and Indians certainly have no hesitations about Africa and have been pouring billions in here. It’s a matter of following the smart money.

• Since 2000, production of gold on an industrial scale has increased, especially from the Geita (AngloGold/Ashanti) and Bulyanhulu (Barrick) mines. The future of Tanzania looks bright.

• The Tanzanian government recently abolished a number of taxes, including Capital Gains Tax. And passed a new mining act. There is absolutely no tax on foreign bank accounts held by non-resident individuals or companies.

• Double taxation treaties have been signed with Canada, Denmark, Finland, India, Italy, United Kingdom, Norway, Sweden, and Zambia. Tanzania is also in the process of negotiating treaties with other countries including Belgium, Burundi, Iran, Lebanon, Malaysia, Mauritius, Pakistan, Rwanda.

• The Tanzanian Central Bank was heavily criticized for excessively restrictive precautionary banking regulations during the last decade. The result is that the Tanzanian banking sector is strong and healthy today.

A typical structure I might recommend to consulting clients, depending on their circumstances of course, would be a Nevis LLC with a bank account in Tanzania. As I said, that can easily be set up within a few weeks, with no need to leave home. The bank account can also be used as a platform for buying and selling stocks and investments internationally, though it should not be compared to an international online brokerage account.

More information on this and many other private banking and offshore wealth protection matters can be found in the Members Area here at Q Wealth Report. If you haven’t yet signed up, click here to see a list of the membership benefits.

I usually refrain from commenting on market conditions. There are two reasons for this.

First, I not really a financial markets guy. I get very bored with all those charts, waves, theories and so on. That’s probably one reason why I stand out from all the self-professed analysts out there on the net. On the rare occasions I do open my mouth about the markets, it’s because I have something serious to say.

My job is nuts and bolts offshore structuring. I’m talking, as regular readers of this blog are well aware, about offshore banking, offshore investing, offshore asset protection and hedging against currency collapses. I like active businesses. I do run a private offshore investment vehicle, but it doesn’t get involved in traditional financial markets – only in what might be termed ‘alternative investments.’

In other words, I prefer to invest my money in sound businesses that I can actually see and exercise some influence over. Businesses where I have the CEO’s personal cellphone number.  Since my modest little fund doesn’t handle multiple billions, I naturally invest in small businesses without stock market listings. I look for small, recession proof businesses in growth areas that will not be affected by short-term financial swings. This is only a hobby at the moment, but over the last few years it has turned into a very profitable one.

Second, I don’t believe the markets are free at all. And again, why complain about something I don’t have any control over? Much better to focus my limited time on something like writing or helping my clients protect their assets.

Sure I keep a little play money in my offshore brokerage account. And I surprise myself sometimes by how successful I am. Markets depend first on psychology, second on manipulations by governments and certain elite forces, and a distant third on actual fundamentals. Then, I remember that I subscribe to a few really good investment research newsletters that certainly make me money. (I’ve listed some of them before, but if anyone is specifically interested, let me know) But really I only put money in my brokerage account that I can afford to play with.

But if clients come to me seeking advice on financial markets, that is not my area. All I can do is refer them to one of my several trusted contacts in this area.

I must say, however, that last week  was abnormally glued to the screen. I always knew gold would go up, and I’m sure it will go a lot higher yet. But it certainly seems like Joe Bloggs on the street has decided gold is a good buy at the moment. The mainstream media hype, which is all that is backing the fiat currencies of the world, must be failing if even average investors are turning to gold. Heck, gold is now even sold in vending machines in Europe!

This week saw the news that French bank Societe Generale had released a report that Ambrose Evans-Pritchard in the British Daily Telegraph dubbed the ‘Bear Case Report.’ This report advises the bank’s clients on how to prepare for the dollar tumbling much further, global equities crashing below March lows, property prices tumbling (remember that email I sent a week ago to QWR  members about the coming commercial real estate crash?) and oil falling below $50 per barrel.

The only solution seems to be for governments to inflate their way out of the problem. But, as was once famously said, inflation is like being pregnant – you can’t opt to be a little bit pregnant!

This was before the news that Dubai World asked for a 6 month break, admitting that they can’t keep up payments any more. Bearing in mind that failure to honour debt obligations is a crime punishable by prison in Dubai, it must have taken some courage, desperation or both for them to own up to that.

Then there was that weird ‘technical difficulty’ on the London Stock Market, which halted trading for a few hours. Now I’m not a conspiracy theorist at all, but that really had me suspecting something.

Oh, and just to take our minds off economic woes, swine flu is conveniently back on the agenda – with a huge jump in deaths in Europe this week. Which of course don’t have anything to do with the wintry weather.

The BBC reported that maybe eating garlic could prevent swine flu. The price of garlic has jumped 300% in China, so expect a global increase to filter through soon. Evil speculators are to blame of course. Maybe those same guys who read the SocGen report, that suggested investing in farm commodities?

Fortunatelyas I write this over the weekend I can see the funny side of things. When faced with apparent disasters, my rule of thumb is “will this matter in five years time?” And although I firmly believe things are going to get a lot worse before they get better, let’s put things in perspective. A private offshore banker from a small Swiss bank (one of the cantonal banks) told me the other day that her grandparents had lived through a real economic crisis – when they didn’t have any food to eat in Europe after the Second World War. For most people hit by the recession, the real net impact is that they will be buying cheaper Christmas presents this year.

Well I’ve rambled on a lot, but what can we learn from last week? I don’t think anything that happened that will be remembered in five weeks, never mind five years. If you want a hedge against inflation, buy gold. Do not buy paper or digital gold as it is most likely a scam. Buy real, physical, solid gold. Want to know how to buy physical gold offshore? Click here.

But if you are willing to be more aggressive, these turbulent times are generating so many new opportunities it’s just incredible. I am truly excited and optimistic about what is going on now making people think about pressing the reset button. If you are not happy with your life as it is, or simply your investment portfolio as it is, the message is loud and clear: you can do something about it! Start with The Q Wealth Report, and join us in Cancun in March for an intensive long weekend course on building offshore wealth!