Panama Foundation

A Panama Foundation, formally known as a Private Interest Foundation is a legal entity in Panama that blends aspects of a trust and a corporation. It's often used for estate planning, asset protection, and holding assets such as bank accounts, real estate, and investment.

The players involved in a Foundation are the Founder, the Foundation Council, the Protector (optional) and the Beneficiaries

Founder

The Founder is the one that establishes the Foundation, like the Settlor of a Trust. Since the details of the founder should be recorded at the Panama Public Registry, thus said information would be available to the public, the standard course of action is to use a Nominee Founder

The Foundation Council

The assets of a Foundation are administered by a Foundation Council (the equivalent of the Board of Directors of a company or the trustee of a trust) for the benefit of the Beneficiaries.

The Foundation Council may be comprised of at least three individuals (no nationality or residency restrictions apply) or one legal entity.  The name and address of the members of the Foundation Council should be recorded at the Panama Public Registry, so that information would be public information, available to anyone searching the records of the Foundation at the Panama Public Registry.  Therefore, many clients request that we provide Nominees to the Foundation Council.

Protector

Finally, it is possible for a Foundation to appoint a Protector (it is optional to do so, not mandatory). The Foundation Charter or the Regulations may provide for the establishment of a supervisory organ (the Protector), whose powers and duties should be set out in said documents. For example, the Foundation Charter or the Regulations may provide that the members of the Foundation Council may only exercise their powers upon the prior authorization of a Protector or supervisory body designated by the founder (for example, the Founder himself).  There may even be Substitute Protectors. Through these means, the Founder obtains additional assurance that the purposes of the foundation will be fulfilled by the members of the Foundation Council and will allow him more control over the affairs of the Foundation

Beneficiary

The Beneficiary are appointed in a document of a private nature called the Regulations, which does not require to be recorded at the Panama Public Registry.  The Beneficiaries are the persons in favour of whom the assets of the Foundation are administered; like in a trust.  There are no shareholders or members; instead, Foundations have beneficiaries, who are the persons for whose benefit the foundation is organized and its purposes carried out.