Warehouses that (sort of) aren’t in any country

The YouTube channel Half As Interesting digs into the weird jurisdictional exemptions of freeports-special economic zones that exist within countries but aren't governed by the same laws. And it turns out freeports have a strange and unexpected connection to the world of fine art too. You can read more about freeports, the art world, and the uber rich in this 2013 article from The Economist:

The world's rich are increasingly investing in expensive stuff, and "freeports" such as Luxembourg's are becoming their repositories of choice. Their attractions are similar to those offered by offshore financial centres: security and confidentiality, not much scrutiny, the ability for owners to hide behind nominees, and an array of tax advantages. This special treatment is possible because goods in freeports are technically in transit, even if in reality the ports are used more and more as permanent homes for accumulated wealth. If anyone knows how to game the rules, it is the super-rich and their advisers.

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The idea is to turn freeports into "places the end-customer wants to be seen in, the best alternative to owning your own museum," says David Arendt, managing director of the Luxembourg freeport. The newest facilities are dotted with private showrooms, where art can be shown to potential buyers. To help expand its private-client business, Christie's, an auction house, has leased space in Singapore's freeport (which also houses a diamond exchange). The wealthy are increasingly using freeports as a place where they can rub shoulders and trade fine objects with each other. It is not uncommon for a painting to be swapped for, say, a sculpture and some cases of wine, with all the goods remaining in the freeport after the deal and merely being shifted between the storage rooms of the buyer's and seller's handling agents.

Read the full article on The Economist.