Monthly Archives: July 2021

Mr. B has been dead and gone for two years now, and the way the Broncos were are misty, watercolor memories that arent coming back.

The NFL is no longer a mom-and-pop business. So when the Broncos look to the future, searching for a new owner, lets hope the team doesnt get mired in sentimentality for the past.

While it would be cool if Brittany Bowlen moved into her late fathers office and took over operation of the Broncos, whats probably best for this team and a town that adores it so much? New money. New ideas. New direction.

Sell the Broncos to Amazon mogul Jeff Bezos. Please.

As a team that has failed to make the NFL playoffs for five long years reconvenes for training camp, CEO Joe Ellis knows the Broncos simply cannot go on this way. The losing on the field must end, as well as hang-wringing over ownership.

Denver is not going to win the Super Bowl this season, regardless of whether Drew Lock or Teddy Bridgewater is the starting quarterback. The only real intrigue will be if the team can play well enough for coach Vic Fangio to retain his job. While frustrating to admit, it feels as if the Broncos are marking time, waiting for big changes in 2022, when the NFL has mandated a transition of power to a new proprietor of our civic treasure.

The bickering between the Bowlen kids has mercifully reached a ceasefire instead of escalating into an an all-out war in the courtroom. But its hard to conceive how Brittany can cobble together unanimous support from her siblings and take over day-to-day operation of a business thats been in the family since her late father Pat bought the team for $71 million way back in 1984.

The Broncos have grown too big for the Bowlen family. There are at least five billion reasons that it makes sense to sell them to Bezos, the business magnate and astronaut wannabe who was born in Albuquerque, on the outskirts of Broncos Country, in 1964.

Heres guessing Bezos would gladly pay $5 billion to add the Broncos to a portfolio that includes everything from an old-school newspaper to cutting-edge spacecraft.

While Ellis emphasized this week that the Broncos are currently not for sale, it would be the hottest property in Denvers sizzling real estate market. Heres betting the team would be gobbled up within two weeks after team trustees gave up on their dream of Brittany running the operation and opened the bidding process.

Selling the team to Bezos would be good for the Broncos and everybody who loves them. After divvying up a check for $5 billion, the bickering Bowlen kids could all buy private islands in the sun and go their separate ways. Raising the country-club fees for members of the NFL ownership fraternity to record heights would make everybody from Jerry Jones to Robert Kraft grin from ear to ear.

But, most important is how Bezos, the richest man who ever lived, could radically transform the team and the town.

While Bezos probably cant deliver quarterback Aaron Rodgers to Colorado in two days via Amazon Prime, we would never have to hear him cry poverty, the way Rockies owner Dick Monfort constantly does at 20th and Blake. Any football player or coach contemplating a possible move to Denver would be attracted by ownership with unlimited resources.

The football stadium Bowlen coerced taxpayers to build him opened in 2001, and has quickly aged in an era when sports facilities have become the centerpiece for entertainment districts and urban renewal. Want a dome that could attract a Super Bowl or Final Four to Colorado? Bezos could get that done as soon as he put his mind to it.

The next owner of the Broncos?

Sorry, Brittany. Times change. And its time for the Bowlen family to get out of the football business.

This is a decision that has to be made on the basis of big dollars and common sense.

Sell the team to Bezos. ASAP.

Here is the original post:

Kiszla: Why its best for Broncos and everybody who loves them for Bowlen family to get out of the football business - The Denver Post

Finland has dealt with the pandemic much better than a lot of other countries. It still has one of the lowest rates of both confirmed cases (about 103,851 at time of writing) and coronavirus-related deaths (currently 982) in Europe, a feat many have attributed to a strategy of rapid lockdowns and stringent travel restrictions.

It did all this in typical Finnish style: without shouting about it. Perhaps this quiet demeanour is related to the countrys deep connection with the natural world, where shouting usually isnt necessary. More than 90% of Finland is either forest or water, and the countrys jokamiehenoikeus (right to roam) gives anyone living in or visiting Finland access to all that nature, including a lot of privately owned land.

It all makes for a place where it is very easy to escape people and everyday pressures, as I found on a visit in 2019.

Days into my trip I found myself cycling along a deserted road on a clunky old bike borrowed from my guesthouse, and the only living creatures I saw were a family of geese waddling through a field towards a thick pine forest. If I hadnt been sitting in a beach-side sauna 45 minutes beforehand, sweating noticeably more than the other two bathers, Id have sworn I had the island of Ini all to myself.

This was to become a familiar feeling during my trip around the Turku archipelago about 20,000 islands off Finlands south-west coast. Visiting all 20,000 seeming a little ambitious, I opted to roughly follow the 200km Archipelago Trail, a loop of road and ferry routes that begins and ends in Turku, Finlands oldest city and its former capital.

Turku mixes historic monuments and modern comforts well, and while theres not really a singular, show-stopping sight, theres plenty of mileage to be had from simply hopping between galleries and lively cafe-bars (many lining the River Aura), and delving into a rich restaurant scene. Favourites included Kuori, for creative and pretty vegetarian and vegan fare, and Tint, a buzzy bistro on the Aura that does gourmet pizzas with unusual toppings (asparagus, strawberry and vegan feta was an unlikely winner).

I began the trail by driving south towards Pargas, 25km away. This small towns headline attraction is Art Bank, which claims to be Scandinavias only viewable private Salvador Dal collection, though Dals surrealism seems pedestrian compared with eccentric owner Ted Wallin, who showed me around. I fall into a trance where I know that I am Salvador, he said, casually. Outside in Pargas, everyday life does not have much glamour, so people come to Art Bank for excitement.

I got my excitement by driving on to the tiny town of Nagu, in a landscape of flat, luscious green fields and pine forests punctuated by red wooden houses.

My base was the Lanterna Hotel (doubles from 100 B&B), close to the harbour, where restaurants include Najaden, a bar and pizzeria on an anchored steamboat. I checked out a red, wooden bell tower tucked away in a forest before hurrying back to the harbour for a ferry to Seili, a tiny island off the main trail with a chilling history.

Seili has a lot for nature-lovers: its home to various rare and unusual plants and I glimpsed wild hares, huge dragonflies and even what I thought was a wild mink. But it hides a more macabre past. In the 17th century Seili housed a large leprosy hospital, to which hundreds of people were shipped on a one-way journey. The hospital was later converted into a mental hospital for women. Although today the hospital is the Archipelago Research Institute, studying environment and wildlife around the Baltic, visitors can still wander the old buildings and cell-like rooms, some of which have been preserved to show the hospitals history.

The next morning in Lanternas antique-filled dining room, I breakfasted on rye bread with peanut and tamarind sauce, plus a lot of cucumber a Finnish staple. Afterwards I headed to the harbour for the (free) five-hour ferry journey to Ut, Finlands most southerly inhabited island, with a population of about 45.

Viewing Ut on Google Maps gives a dizzying sense of its isolation and its exactly this remoteness that appeals. Theres a hotel in former army barracks (the island is still used by the Finnish military), but I stayed at Hannas Horizon B&B (doubles with homemade breakfast from 77). Owner Hanna Kovanen is a fount of knowledge about Ut, having been born here, and also runs tours of the red-and-white lighthouse (Finlands oldest functioning example), which has a chapel on its third floor.

After the tour I clambered out to some rocks on the islands southern coast. Maybe it was the romantic filter my brain had devised for Ut, or maybe it was the (admittedly quite strong) Finnish IPA Id taken with me, but as I stared out towards a lot of glorious nothingness, I realised Id never been more detached from the rest of the world. It felt fantastic.

My next island stop was Korpo, home to the rural Hotel Nestor (doubles from 130 B&B), plus a lake and a sculpture walk in the forests.

Ini, four ferries and four hours away to the north, was my final stop. Its tiny main village has a pretty church, cafe and small harbour with sauna and beach, where I forced myself into the cold water. I warmed up in the sauna (traditionally, youre meant to sauna first, then dip into cold water), where I made the British mistake of wearing swimming trunks. After derisive glances from the other users, I left, shed the shorts and returned, acting as if nothing had happened.

Heading back to Turku, I stopped at several towns on the final section of the trail, now connected to the mainland, including Taivassalo and Naantali. Naantalis tourist-heavy harbour was a fine place to stroll, but nowhere has the gentle magic of the smaller islands or their wildlife. Id regularly seen bounding deer and stags, countless fluorescent caterpillars and colourful insects, plus more rare birds than my basic ornithologycould name.

My magical tour had touched on only about 20 of the archipelagos islands and I was very happy to reflect that that left me 19,980 others to explore on a return trip.

For more information see VisitFinland.com. Ferry timetables can be found at saaristolautat.fi

Excerpt from:

Away from it all: island hopping around Finlands Turku archipelago - The Guardian

A Welsh beach dubbed one of the most beautiful in the world is just a short drive away from Swansea.

With three miles of golden sand along a blue vision of a coastline, Rhossili Bay, situated at the western end of popular holiday destination of the Gower peninsula is a little taste of Europe in Wales.

Its exactly the kind of holiday people are flocking to when foreign holidays are so at risk this year.

Travelling to Rhossili Bay involves zero risk of quarantine, plus the top quality beach emulates one you might find in south France or even the Greek islands on the right day.

The beach is covered everyday by an incoming tide, meaning it is unspoilt and clean - perfect for families.

2Chill member Sofia Lewis went so far as to call it without a doubt, one of the most beautiful beaches in the world.

Rating it five stars, she continued, It's just a 40-minute drive from Swansea, but be aware it can take longer in the summer season depending on traffic.

The beach is three miles of sand, so there is always plenty of room to set up space on the beach itself.

When the tide is out, the beach expands far and wide and locals say there is always a free spot away from others - giving it the feeling of a private island somewhere slightly more tropical than Wales, dare we suggest.

Wondering where to eat, drink or visit for your next UK holiday? At 2Chill we help you decide where to go and stay next with hundreds of recommendations right on your doorstep.

Visit our brilliant new website 2chill.co.uk and start packing.

If you'd also like weekly inspiration and advice for your next trip, you can sign up to the Chill newsletter here.

For the latest must-have travel news follow us on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

With Sofias gushing review, it will come as no surprise to hear Rhossili Bay was not only voted Trip Advisors best beach in Britain, but also third best in Europe and ninth best in the world.

There is plenty to do if you dont fancy spending all day sunbathing or swimming though.

If you are interested in water sports, Sofia says, it is also incredible for surfing and there are plenty of local surf schools available for booking.

The beach is also dog friendly all year round if youd rather wander along the sand or the Welsh coastal path which takes you along the headland.

A 40 minute walk or half hour drive away is the quaint village Rhossili, home to a caf, restaurant, a National Trust shop and other visitor attractions.

From here, you can walk to Worms Head, an island off the Gower peninsula. Ensure you plan your journey ahead though, as you can only reach the island during low tide.

Getting there

Rhossili Bay is accessible via a National Trust carpark costing 6.50 for a whole day.

By public transport, you can get the 118 bus ending in at the Terminus stop, Rhossili, a 40 minute walk from the beach.

Have you visited Rhossili beach? Do you agree with this recommendation or is there another spot in Wales people must visit? Sign up and leave your recommendation at 2Chill .

Read the original:

One of the most beautiful beaches in the world is only a 40 minute drive from Swansea - Wales Online

An offshore law firm examines recent developments in the British Virgin Islands and what is being done to keep the jurisdiction on the front foot.

The following article comes from partner Henry Mander and senior associate Matthew Howson of Harneys, the offshore law firm. They write about whats being done to ensure that the British Virgin Islands, a British Overseas Territory, remains competitive. With so much global pressure on firms to comply with disclosure of beneficial ownership and the move by the Group of 20 nations to set a floor for corporation tax, the role of offshore centres remains under focus. (This news service talked in December 2020 to BVI Finance about the beneficial ownership issue.)

The editors of this news service are pleased to share these views; the usual editorial disclaimers apply on views of guest contributors. To comment, email tom.burroughes@wealthbriefing.com and jackie.bennion@clearviewpublishing.com

Many readers will already be familiar with the BVI co, a company formed under the British Virgin Islands Business Companies Act 2004. These have been the mainstay of the BVIs success as an international finance centre, used around the world and, in some regions, ubiquitous. Flexible and easily comprehensible, they are used for corporate and private wealth purposes alike.

However, the BVI company is not the BVIs only contribution to the private wealth space. In particular, the BVIs trust regime is both innovative and within the mainstream of trust jurisdictions. Most BVI trusts are used in conjunction with BVI companies: this allows the client to liaise with only one set of lawyers and ensures that there will be no conflict between BVI corporate law and another jurisdictions trust law. Yet, because of this advantageous trust regime, BVI trusts are increasingly requested even where no BVI company is involved; at the time of writing, the authors are drafting two such trusts.

Now, new legislation has been developed in concert with London counsel and academics to ensure that the BVI trust offering remains at the top of its game. The changes are technical, but cutting through the legalese, what are the essentials for you and your client?

Firewalls My son is a beneficiary but his marriage is in trouble could his spouse attack the trust? We are commonly asked about the jurisdictions trust firewall legislation. This has historically defended BVI trusts against attacks over succession and forced heirship, and also from creditors, but increasingly attention has turned to attacks during beneficiaries divorce proceedings. The firewall has therefore been greatly strengthened and modernised. Now, claims and interests (including beneficial interests) are protected, and the defeated attacker may have a personal relationship with a beneficiary instead of the settlor. The definition of personal relationship itself has been expanded to include step-relationships and children born of surrogacy or artificial fertilisation.

As well as that, the questions that should be decided under BVI law (rather than some foreign law more advantageous to the attacker) have been confirmed to be virtually every question applicable to a trust.

Reserved powers The BVI is already famous for its VISTA legislation which essentially delegates the trustees powers and duties over the investment of the trust fund to the directors of an underlying BVI company within the trust (which can then hold other assets underneath); such directors are often the client and their advisors. Although most offshore jurisdictions permit reserved powers through bespoke drafting, only the BVIs VISTA grants the reassurance of statutory backing via a standalone piece of legislation. Thus an offshore trustee can hold potentially problematic assets such as cryptocurrency, industrial assets in difficult regions, and so on, with minimised risk, via a BVI company within a VISTA trust.

Although reserved power trusts, outside the VISTA regime, have long been popular in the BVI, they have historically relied on a relatively narrow section in the legislation. The more extensive statutory backing, long applicable to VISTA trusts, on the other hand has now been granted to reserved powers over other areas of the trust, such as distributions to beneficiaries. The new expanded legislation concerning reserved powers trust vigorously restates the powers that may be reserved to protectors, settlors or other persons, without questioning the validity of the trust. A person may have the power to:

1,Revoke a trust; 2,Change its terms or governing law; 3,Add or remove beneficiaries or trustees; or 4, Require trustee powers in general, including in order to implement a specific investment decision, to be exercisable only with the consent of, or at the direction of, of that person.

Rule in Hastings Bass - aka undoing a mistake This rule originally derived from a 1975 English case and has a long and controversial history around the trust world. Fortunately for non-trust lawyers, this history need not be discussed here. Essentially, the rule has now been enshrined in BVI statute. It allows the BVI Court to wholly or partially set aside an exercise of a fiduciary power, which will often mean in practice a trustees distribution to a beneficiary. The requirements are essentially that the power-holder, when exercising the power in question:

--took into account an irrelevant consideration (whether of fact, law or both) or did not take into account a relevant consideration; --when if they had (not) done so, they would not have exercised the power or would have exercised it on a different occasion or in a different manner.

It can be seen that this rule is very useful for salvaging distributions or transactions which were poorly discussed or investigated beforehand, and which turned out to have disastrous tax or other consequences. Without such statute, the common law remedy as it presently stands is that the beneficiary should sue the trustee or advisor for negligence. Clearly this is not an attractive course for any party.

Resealing Not all shares in BVI companies are held in well-drafted and considered BVI trusts. In fact, many shareholders simply hold the shares in their own name. This requires their families to obtain a BVI grant of probate or letters of administration on their death in order to be able to transfer the shares or to be able to exercise their voting rights. This can cause a period of limbo while the grant is obtained. However, the BVI Registry has greatly speeded up their procedures, and we have various methods available to further expedite the process. One of these is to reseal a foreign grant which requires a shorter process than where one is obtaining one from scratch. Now, grants from the Commonwealth, the US and Hong Kong can be resealed in the BVI.

Summary: horizon scanning With the increased focus that many high net worth families have had on their structures since the outbreak of last years global pandemic, many clients have taken the opportunity to look behind the simple BVI company and have become more aware of the sophisticated and bespoke structuring options available, which are being implemented regularly to assist from a succession planning and asset protection perspective.

With the changing landscapes of economic substance and beneficial ownership reporting, amongst other things, regular reviews of private wealth structures are taking place (or certainly should be if not) and such reviews allow for opportunities for restructurings to modernise matters, either to implement new BVI trusts or update existing BVI trusts to take advantage of the cutting-edge nature of the offerings in the jurisdictions private wealth space.

See original here:

Keeping British Virgin Islands Competitive In Wealth Planning - Wealth Briefing