Massive data leak in Panama reveals money rings of global leaders (2024)

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Massive data leak in Panama reveals money rings of global leaders? ›

A massive, anonymous leak of financial documents from a Panamanian law firm has revealed an extensive worldwide network of offshore “shell” companies — including ones with ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin — that allow the wealthy to hide their assets from taxes and, in some cases, to launder billions in cash, a ...

WHAT IS THE PANAMA PAPERS CASE ABOUT? Panamanian prosecutors allege that Mossack, Fonseca and their associates created a web of offshore companies that used complex transactions to hide money linked to illicit activities in the “car wash” corruption scandal of Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht.

A giant leak of more than 11.5 million financial and legal records exposes a system that enables crime, corruption and wrongdoing, hidden by secretive offshore companies.

Fonseca had said the firm, which closed in 2018, had no control over how its clients might use offshore vehicles created for them. Mossack Fonseca helped create and sell around 240,000 shell companies across four decades in business. It announced its closure in March 2018, two years after the scandal erupted.

The Panama Papers refer to the 11.5 million leaked encrypted confidential documents that were the property of Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca. The documents were released on April 3, 2016, by the German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung (SZ), dubbing them the “Panama Papers.”

Panama's banking sector is known for its stability and security, the use of US dollar as the national currency and with strict regulations in place to ensure that banks operate in a safe and sound manner.

Panama's official currency is the balboa. The rate of exchange for the balboa has always been tied to the US dollar—one dollar equals one balboa. Panama does not, however, print its own paper currency and instead uses the US dollar as legal tender. Panamanian coins come in 1, 5, 10, 25, and 50-cent pieces.

"John Doe", the whistleblower who leaked the documents to German journalist Bastian Obermayer from the newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung (SZ), remains anonymous, even to the journalists who worked on the investigation. "My life is in danger", the whistleblower told them.

Panama's legal and tax structures make it a pure tax haven. Panama imposes no income, corporate, capital gains, or estate taxes on offshore entities that only engage in business outside of the jurisdiction. Offshore companies can engage in business locally—a rare perk—but will pay local taxes as a result.

Pandora Papers investigation discloses the undercover owners of offshore firms, unidentified bank accounts, private jets, mansions, yachts and even artworks by Pablo Picasso, Banksy and other artists, by providing such information than what is usually available to law enforcement agencies and cash-strapped governments.

What happened after the Panama Papers leak? ›

In the U.S., the Panama Papers helped persuade Congress to write and pass the Corporate Transparency Act, which requires owners of U.S. companies to disclose their identities to the Treasury Department.

Mossack Fonseca & Co.

From its establishment in 1977 until the publication of the Panama Papers in April 2016, the company remained mostly obscured from public attention, even though it was a major firm in the global offshore industry and acted for approximately 300,000 companies.

Panamanian authorities launched the investigation in 2016 following accusations in Brazil that Mossack Fonseca's local subsidiary had helped create financial structures to hide the proceeds of corruption and tax evasion between 2010 and 2014.

The Pandora Papers are 11.9 million leaked documents with 2.9 terabytes of data that the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) published beginning on 3 October 2021.

Panama's tax system is based on a territorial concept of income. Citizens and residents are taxed on income earned from Panamanian sources. Non-residents are taxed only on income from Panamanian sources, and the tax on any type of income paid to a non-resident must be withheld by the payer.

PANAMA CITY (AP) — The trial of 27 people charged in connection with the worldwide “Panama Papers” money laundering started Monday in a Panamanian criminal court. Those on trial include the owners of the Mossack-Fonseca law firm that was at the heart of the 2016 massive document leak.

Scandal. In 1892/1893, a large number of ministers (including Clemenceau) were accused by French nationalists of taking bribes from Ferdinand de Lesseps in 1888 to permit the stock issue, leading to a corruption trial against Lesseps and his son Charles.

The balboa replaced the Colombian peso in 1904 following the country's independence. The balboa is tied to the United States dollar (which is also legal tender in Panama) at an exchange rate of 1:1 since its introduction and has always circulated alongside dollars. Panama has never had an official central bank.

Panama has few tax treaties with countries that have strong economic ties to it, further protecting the financial privacy of offshore banking clients who are citizens of other nations. Panama also offers the benefit of having no exchange control laws.

Panama began using the US dollar alongside the Panamanian balboa shortly after its independence from Colombia in 1903. The adoption of the USD was an obvious choice for the new country as the United States built and maintained the Panama Canal from its inception until its handover back to Panama in 2000.