If you still aren’t aware then do know for a fact that the Panama Papers Leak, most believe, is well poised to assume the shape of one of the biggest financial scams in the years to come. It was only a few days ago that German SüddeutscheZeitung had started publishing posts containing information about the 11.5 million leaked documents procured from the famous Panama Law firm Mossack Fonseca – which, allegedly has helped the most affluent people from across the world to set up bank accounts offshore. And who exactly are the wealthiest people, we are talking about? They hail from all walks of life including athletics, politics as well as business.
Panama Papers Leak: The Documents
As per SüddeutscheZeitung, the reporters had actually gone on to secure the aforementioned documents from a confidential source – consequently sharing the files with other media establishments. The documents have relentlessly gone on to reveal the variant ways in which the rich and famous have been manipulating offshore tax-havens. Mossack Fonseca remains the fourth biggest offshore service provider in the world. The firm has provided services to more than 300,000 companies. Notably, half of the companies are registered in the tax havens administered by the British. The leak is tipped to be bigger than WikiLeaks (2010).
All you needed to know about the dealings
Needless to say, Fonseca did not deal directly with the company owners and acted mostly on the instructions procured from intermediaries like banks, lawyers, accountants as well as trust companies. The offshore facilitators in Europe were primarily based in Jersey, Switzerland, Luxembourg, and United Kingdom.
The names that have surfaced in the Panama Paper Leaks include SigmundurDavíðGunnlaugsson, Fifa president Gianni Infantino and David Cameron’s father. Here are further details.
Russian President Vladimir Putin emerged at the heart of the scam with reports directly establishing links between Putin and the much infamous “inner circle” functioning in the firm.
SigmundurDavíðGunnlaugsson, Iceland’s former Prime Minister was one of the first names that surfaced in the scandal. In fact, he resigned amidst the fiasco right in April this year.
David Cameron’s father’s name was also pulled in the scandal surrounding offshore funds. He allegedly ran an offshore fund without paying taxes in Britain by hiring a small unit of Bahama’s residents.
Theories surrounding the scandal
As per the latest reports, theorists actually believe that it’s the Russians, who are behind the leaks. The whole movie is dubbed as a means to convey a message to the Americans and other political leaders in the West that they have information about their supposed misdeeds as well.
As investigations are still on, it is yet too early to say whether or not this particular financial fiasco will go on to assume the shape of one of the biggest financial scams in the years to come or not.
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