Thread by @fascinatorfun

More than 100 billionaires kept money hidden in offshore accounts

It helps to understand what “offshore accounts” means in this context.

And then we can look at examples about why people might use them

Because £/$ are hidden by the super rich this way washingtonpost.com/business/inter…

1/. What is an offshore system?

Financial devices that offer privacy, but also opportunities to hide assets from
Authorities
Creditors
Claimants
Public Scrutiny

2/ why is it called “offshore finance?

The countries offering this system were often coastal locations or islands. But that is not true or necessary now. The term “offshore” signifies anywhere that is not a customer’s residence.

3/ is it legal?

It depends. They may be set up@legally but used for illegal purposes.

Often by very rich people seeking to get richer, and too often from countries where poverty is extreme

Let ‘s look at some

Bribing officials.

No longer used notes in brown envelopes.

Multiple offshore accounts hiding that official’s ownership of valuable real estate in London.

Or the ownership of chauffeured cars, luxury furnishings

Offshore accounts stuffed with valuable assets provided by oilmen who wanted favours - access to oil rich properties - to officials who could leverage that access.

Or the Israeli Billionaire accused of using shell companies that do not identify him to steal $ hundreds of millions from Congo one of the poorest nations in the world.

Despicable. He denies it. Of course.

Venezuelans do it.

Russians do it. At least 7 are under US sanctions.

Rich Indonesians do it despite the painful poverty in the country. A third of their 31 billionaires have offshore accounts

Similarly in Thailand

Because these assets do not show up in official statistics, global inequality may have been understated

$1 trillion? $25 Trillion?

More likely $5trillion to $8 trillion.

Still 10% of the world’s GDP.

Staggering sums.

And this is not wealth these people NEED to live very well indeed.

Remember the Panama Papers, Pandora Papers not reveal ALL the hidden wealth. Just pockets of it due to leaks from a few financial firms that offer these services.

Just 14 firms in this case operating from the Seychelles, Cyprus, BVI & Singapore.

US billionaires are under represented - maybe, in part, because US tax laws pitches their legal tax burden so low they are not incentivised to use them

That said greed often knows no boundaries

There are some

They do love their flashy charitable gestures whilst hiding profits

The billionaires may be cagey in written correspondence about their reasons for secrecy or what they will do with the wealth.

But how they love their yachts - Six deck, 300 foot yachts!
($50 million)

And jets - Gulfsteam G550s ($60 million)

That Thai family that co-owns Red Bull..

Undeterred by being exposed in the Panama Papers, it just shifted its business from the Maltese firm Mossack Fonesca that was forced to shut down to the Jersey based Trident Trust. That firm MUST have known the history.

Sorry Mossack was a Panamanian firm with offices in Malta.

Back to the Trident Teust for the Thai family.

Jewellery, art, property, cars, boat, monies, Jerrard & Co Ltd ($12 mill A YEAR dividends).

Think twice when you buy Red Bull.

Tax evasion and avoidance are keeping countries poor