Panama has always looked to attract foreign capital: it imports five times what it exports. Mostly tourism, banana exports, shrimp exports, Canal fees, and foreign capital have covered the trade gap: there is almost $40 billion in Panama’s banks, which is quite high for a country with a population of 3 million, 300,000 of which have money to put in a bank. In Panama the business environment is excellent. Business people are king; no one likes a businessman more than Panamanians. I am always surprised by the number of business people with different ethnic backgrounds that are trading and negotiating and just trying to make a buck in Panama: in this environment there is little consensus so that public interests as represented by government policy is weak in comparison to private business interests. Each ethnic community in Panama has its own nitch: Muslims; used cars; Indians, small-loans and electronics; Jewish, clothes and banking; Greeks, shipping and fishing; Italians, imports of fine goods and supermarkets; Spanish, furniture; Chinese, restaurants, construction and banking. In this business environment just make sure that you don’t tread across someone else’s private interest. You have to make a local contact in Panama in order to get what you need done, though some kinds of businesses – internet-based businesses - fall outside this fact – but still a local contact will help. Panama has great construction and great communications, a legacy of the Canal. There are many Internet providers and banks that offer everything from web hosting to e-commerce accounts.