The two principal reasons a person has to open an offshore account are the protection of his personal identity and maintenance of his privacy. Most individuals start up an offshore bank account to avoid the government or private individuals looking into their account. Offshore bank accounts offer protection from these probes.

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FT.com - Wall Street stocks fell for the third successive day on Wednesday after the chairman of the Federal Reserve said that inflation remained "uncomfortably high".

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Reuters - Economic growth was moderately stronger in the fourth quarter than previously thought, primarily because businesses added more to inventories than was estimated a month ago, the Commerce Department reported on Thursday.

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Reuters - Blue-chip stocks advanced on Thursday as investors sought bargains after three days of losses and an unexpected drop in weekly unemployment benefits claims suggested jobs strength.

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Reuters - BCE Inc. , Canada's largest telecoms company, is not talking with any private equity investor about taking the company private or about any other similar transaction, it said on Thursday.

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I used to be a member of Crunch Fitness Gym in Clonsilla, Dublin but my membership lapsed a few years ago. The other day I received a SMS message from them which said something like SPECIAL offer for St Patricks day. Rejoin Crunch gym before 7pm Mon 19th and receive a free Nike Rockstar course and no joining fee. Only a few spaces remaining. 01 8025906

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AP - Late payments on certain auto and home equity loans climbed in the final quarter of last year, while delinquencies on credit card bills largely held steady, suggesting some consumers are feeling more squeezed than others.

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AFP - Retail group TJX has disclosed that some 45.6 million credit and debit card numbers were stolen by hackers in 2005 and 2006, along with other potentially sensitive customer information.

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