Investors from emerging economies will often invest in alternative places to avoid the corruption and institutional restraints that exist in their own nations. For example, Cyprus gets a lot of direct investment from people in Russia. In 2012, Cyprus amended a law on trusts known as the CIT law. This law gives the settlor a large degree of protection from creditors. This makes Cyprus a popular destination for foreigners wishing to protect their assets.
See Eric S. Rein, The Basis for Cyprus Trust Popularity for Asset Protection, The National Law Review, May 30, 2015.
Special thanks to Jim Hillhouse for bringing this article to my attention.
