I have been looking into offshore banking. Does anyone know about the
secrecy and safety factors for a Swiss Bank Account?

I had a friend who set one up through a company this url - 
http://www.offshorecorporation.com and he was happy but I lost touch
with him after he moved.

But just wondering about the privacy and secrecy of actually going
through with it. Does anybody have any experience with setting up an
offshore bank account????

Thanks.

Dear Mr. Franklin, 

Swiss banks are committed, by Swiss banking laws, into secrecy
regarding their clientele. In addition, Swiss banks provide also
numbered accounts, where only the bank and the client know whom the
account belongs to.

"Any banker who reveals information about you without your consent
risks several months in prison. The only exceptions to this rule
concern serious crimes such as gun smuggling and drug trafficking.
Bank secrecy is not lifted for tax evasion. This is because failure to
report income or assets is not considered a crime in Switzerland. As
such, neither the Swiss government, nor anyother government, can
obtain information about your bank account. They must first convince a
Swiss judge that you have committed a serious crime punishable by the
Swiss Penal Code. Bank secrecy will not be lifted for private matters
such as inheritance or divorce if you have kept your banking
information strictly confidential. It is up to plaintiffs to prove
that the account exists if they wish the judge to pursue the case. In
this respect, the numbered account provides the maximum degree of
confidentiality." (SOURCE: Wikipedia, Swiss Banking,
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_banking>).

Banks also ensure security in the transactions, for example they state
(on several sites): "Security is ensured by military-grade encryption.
You will receive a special device that looks like a pocket calculator.
The device is very easy to use and very James Bond like. It generates
a special code needed to access your account, each session uses a
different code. In terms of security, this is the most advanced system
we know for security."
(SOURCES: 
Classic Swiss bank account 
<http://switzerland.isyours.com/e/banking/accounts/classic-bank-account.html> 
TaxHavenCo
<http://www.taxhavenco.com/osm/SwissInternet.html>). 


Further Reading
===============

Swiss Bank Accounts.com 
<http://swiss-bank-accounts.com/>

Cecil Adams, "What is a "Swiss bank account"?", The Streight Dope,
27-Feb-1981, <http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_331b.html>

Frequently Asked Questions -- Swiss Banking
<http://www.swconsult.ch/chbanks/faq.htm> 

Bonnie Burns, "My Swiss Bank Affair Opening An Account", Escape Artist, 
<http://www.escapeartist.com/efam/49/Swiss_Banking.html> 

I hope this answers your question. Please contact me if you need any
clarification on this answer before you rate it. My search terms were
:
[security "swiss bank account"] 
[secrecy "swiss bank account"]

You can try starting with 2 articles i wrote..i think the will help you:

http://ezinearticles.com/?A-Guide-to-Swiss-Banking---Part-1&id=105486

http://ezinearticles.com/?A-Guide-to-Swiss-Banking---Part-2&id=106955

They explane most of they thinks one needs to know about Swiss bank accounts.