As far as I know, it's possible open an anonymous LLC, but to open a bank account must disclose the owners.
Member = owner
Manager = manager
LLC's can be member-managed or manager-managed.
Now the transaction:
1. Lawyer forms you Anonymous LLC,the sole owner of the LLC is an irrevocable trust and you are the sole manager (the LLC is manager-managed);
2. Obtain an EIN for the LLC using the EIN of the Trust;
3. Attorney will draft you a bank letter, this informs the bank the attorney formed the LLC, is familiar with the organizational structure, and confirms you are the sole manager of the manager-managed LLC (bank letters are also usually required when opening a DE C-corp bank account outside DE)
No matter what, to get an EIN for the LLC from the IRS one owner must apply using SSN; TIN or EIN. The EIN application will be disclosed to the IRS but otherwise is not public record.
Similarly, title holding companies don't need one either.
They pass through all costs and tax deductions straight to me if I wish, their name can be on any property if I wish, and my name is not on them in the state's public databases.
And thats not even with TRYING to be anonymous. If there was a subpoena and some regulator knew who I was, thats fine.
But I also know how to form them in a way where a subpoena would yield no information either.
The classic examples seem to be buying and selling things, but it's hard to imagine how this would work without banks.
Is the idea that it covers you for transactions via contracts/ownership-stakes/other illiquid-instruments-of-value?
Think about it analogous to when you are choosing how anonymously you want to browse the internet:
Don't want your roommate seeing your browsing history? Okay then private browser.
Don't want your roommate seeing URLs you visit by monitoring the router? Okay then TOR.
Don't want a three letter agency running an exploit over TOR that reveals your clearnet IP address? Okay then use Whonix or Tails.
It is similar when deciding how anonymous you want your LLC or surrogate entity structure.
All responsible banks have KYC (know your customer) rules.
They aren't just going to let some company come in and open an account without knowing anything about the people who have signatory authority over the account and funds as well as the source of the funds.
So criminals don't really use banks and anonymous accounts the way you think they do. What they do is operate semi-profitable businesses to launder the money via semi-boring companies that are small enough to not raise suspicion but profitable enough to conceal the sources of funds.
THOSE business accounts are then used to purchase "services and goods" from offshore organizations with their own accounts that are owned by alternative personas.
The idea of a truly anonymous bank account is a myth.
The issue that was faced is that banks could rightfully claim that they had no duty to verify identity and/or the legal status of funds they accepted on deposit. This led to all sorts of shenanigans like fraud, money laundering, and outright theft.
the KYC regulations are a compromise between having the government know EVERYTHING about your financial life. With KYC, it's the bank's duty to know at least a few things about you and your money to make it harder to use the financial system to conduct criminal activity.
I know a lot of folks like to believe in the libertarian paradise where no government can ever exercise power over you and each man is a sovereign unto themselves but the truth is that a true libertarian community wouldn't be someplace anyone wants to live.
Gotcha.
EDIT: Elaborated
No, you can just register as a foreign LLC [1]. Notably, you do not have to disclose ownership to do business as a foreign, i.e. non-Californian, entity in California.
[1] http://bpd.cdn.sos.ca.gov/llc/forms/llc-5.pdf
Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer. This is not legal advice.
A state business registry does not. Which is why you use / might want a registered agent for your business. But you don't need to do the same thing at the bank (and in fact, I don't think most banks will allow an account without a name and a SSN to tie it back to)
For the record, I am a practicing attorney licensed in NY State.
You can go from LLC Name (Foo, LLC) to Registered Agent Name in 30 seconds. You cannot do the same with Company Name to Bank Account (or from Bank Account to Owner Name).
I also use a registered agent for all my LLCs, but you don't have to. You can totally put your own address down when doing paperwork, and then your home address is open to the world.