Concerns about the safety of deposit accounts to the millions held in self-invested personal pension plans or in insurance-based accounts in companies such as AIG, have driven some entrepreneurs to look offshore in a ‘mad state of panic’.

‘They want to know if there are any other banks in danger of going under and where they should move their money. It's easy to say 'keep calm' but there are a lot of worried people out there,' one adviser told The Daily Telegraph.

Many entrepreneurs have been tempted by the Irish government's decision to protect all bank deposits as the British ceiling of £50,000 holds little attraction for the ‘heavy hitters’, according to the adviser.

‘We have seen quite a few of our perfectly normally level-headed clients suddenly starting to get more stressed. It's taken us by surprise, but the vast majority are just looking for enlightenment,’ Peter O'Sullivan, head of financial services at Tenon, said.

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