Patrick - read your blog which is most interesting and I have a few questions - hopefully your responses will clear my thinking/understanding
1) You have taken funds offshore to a USA broker company and have bought your instruments out of these funds. Where are the instruments being held and in whose name are they in. If in your name with the USA broker then surely the funds are designated as a USA investment and as such you could run foul of the USA tax officials?
2) If the funds are in a nominees/own name sitting in Ireland who is holding these instruments for you USA broker or an agent broker in Ireland, and would they still be considered outside the USA tax laws or inside for tax purposes and don't you run the same risks if held within you broker account in USA
3) Could you not have established a broker account in Ireland and held the instruments with them directly without the risk of the USA leg being subject to some form of funds confiscation
4) Are you paying fees in USA and Ireland?
Maybe once you have settled all the bits and bobs of going the route you chose is to write a blog setting out how you decided on this path its benefits and pitfalls and if you did it again (maybe you will) whether you would tackle it differently
