In a new report on inequality, published today, Oxfam reveals that the richest one percent of the global population now owns more wealth that the rest of the world combined. In 2015, just 62 people had more wealth than the poorest half of the world's population, … [Read more...]
Finance Sector
Links Jan 15
The Heavens: more accolades Treasure Islands Blog Civil Society in Zambia calls for government to adhere to beneficial ownership transparency in the new EITI principle Publish What You Pay Zambia MEP takes EU to court on tax transparency euobserver Apple May Be on Hook for $8 Billion in … [Read more...]
Tax justice and human rights: an issue that’s been hiding in plain sight
A new paper by Advocate Paul R Beckett in the Isle of Man is adding to the small but fast-growing body of work on Tax Justice and Human Rights. Its crowd-thrilling title is The Representative Impact of the Isle of Man as a Low Tax Area on the International Human Rights Continuum from a Fiscal and … [Read more...]
Links Jan 13
EC tax ruling: Belgian opportunity, big 4 at risk? Uncounted LuxLeaks whistleblowers thanked as tax probes continue ICIJ See also: LuxLeaks” trial to start on April 26th - Petition update on Support Antoine Deltour! U.S. Will Track Secret Buyers of Luxury Real Estate The New York … [Read more...]
Call for Papers – Research Workshop on Corruption and Tax Havens, London, April 2016
Call for papers for a Research Workshop on CORRUPTION AND THE ROLE OF TAX HAVENS City University London, 28th / 29th April 2016 In May 2016 the U.K Government will be hosting a global summit on corruption. Ahead of this event, the Association for Accountancy & Business Affairs,(i) City … [Read more...]
Links Jan 12
Whistleblower - Alone against the System Deutsche Welle Petition: Tax Transparency Now War on Want Why India's Demand For UN Tax Committee Holds The Key To Funding The Paris Deal Huffington Post Ireland: the Tax Haven that Dare Not Speak Its Name counterpunch "If your top political … [Read more...]
Links Jan 11
Uncounted: Power, inequalities and the post-2015 data revolution Africa: Is Responsible Tax Behaviour the Next Frontier of CSR? allAfrica / Institute of Development Studies Belgium's $763 Million Tax Loophole Shut in EU Payback Order Bloomberg See also:In wake of Luxleaks - EU says Belgium's … [Read more...]
Links Jan 7
US Congress opposes World Bank plan to weaken environmental and social protections, seeks transparency about “beneficial owners” of shell companies CIEL Falciani labels the Swiss as financial mercenaries swissinfo Capital flight VII. The effects of globalization and foreign ownership of the … [Read more...]
Links Jan 6
The economic crisis impacting Jersey, one of the oldest tax havens in the world BBC Mundo (In Spanish) See also our recent blog Jersey: the fall of a Finance-Cursed tax haven Cayman Financial Services Minister: Tax dodgers beware Cayman Reporter Tax avoidance hits the poorest hardest The … [Read more...]
The ironic pillage of tax haven Puerto Rico by offshore hedge funds
Puerto Rico is a peculiar historical relic, whose relationship with the United States has strong echoes of the half-in-half-out relationships that the British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies enjoy with the mother country, the United Kingdom. This halfway-house link, which provides solid … [Read more...]
Links Jan 5
Cook Islands, a Paradise of Untouchable Assets The New York Times. From 2013, but well worth the reminder. HSBC escapes action by City regulator following Swiss tax scandal The Guardian The Swiss Have Sent a Chilling Message to Banking Whistleblowers The Wire See also our recent blog on How … [Read more...]
Links Jan 4
When will banks learn that dodgy tax practices actually cost them dear? The Guardian Swiss bank Lombard Odier to pay $100 million to resolve U.S. tax probe Reuters See also: Swiss Bank Admits Cash and Gold Withdrawals Cheated IRS Bloomberg Swiss bank Julius Baer U.S. tax evasion settlement … [Read more...]
Time to investigate the Big 4 over the financial crash
A guest blog by Dr. Atul K. Shah, Senior Lecturer, Suffolk Business School. As background to this, it is useful to quote from the work of Prem Sikka, cited in Shah's research: "Successive governments have failed to investigate the firms, or prosecute their partners. Instead, the partners of … [Read more...]
Links Dec 18
Greenpeace links frackers to tax havens Financial Times (paywall) We reference the original report in links on Dec 16 - Revealed: Cuadrilla and leading fracking firms’ tax haven ownership Energy Desk Cayman: Centralised platform on beneficial ownership coming Cayman Reporter Fifa scandal: … [Read more...]
Wealth management: tax avoidance is just the tip of the iceberg
Recently we wrote a blog about some rather unique research carried out by Brooke Harrington, an Associate Professor at Copenhagen Business School who trained to become a wealth manager in order to study it properly. This week, Naomi Fowler interviewed her for our latest Taxcast. We think it is worth … [Read more...]