LONDON — The prime minister of Iceland resigned on Tuesday, succumbing to political pressure two days after an enormous leak of documents from a secretive Panamanian law firm about offshore shell companies and tax shelters. The resignation of the prime minister, Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson, was the first prominent political fallout from the document leaks known as the Panama Papers, which have shed a harsh light on the private financial activities of many rich and powerful people. Officials around the world, from Europe to Asia to the Americas, were scrambling on Tuesday to contain the fallout — particularly in Britain, where Prime Minister David Cameron, who has portrayed himself as a champion of financial transparency, was battling revelations in the leaks that British-governed territories are vast havens of hidden wealth, including for members of his own family. The leader of Britain’s opposition Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn, called for an independent investigation into the tax affairs of all Britons linked to the Panama revelations — including Mr. Cameron’s family — and for Britain to impose direct rule on its overseas territories and dependencies, if necessary, to get them to comply with British tax law. “The government needs to stop pussyfooting around on tax dodging,” Mr. Corbyn said. Mr. Gunnlaugsson’s resignation was announced on television by Sigurdur Ingi Johannsson, a government minister and the deputy chairman of his Progressive Party, and it was confirmed by the state broadcaster, RUV. It was not immediately clear whether Mr. Gunnlaugsson’s resignation will have broader repercussions for the government of Iceland, a tiny island nation of 323,000 that is still recovering from the global financial crisis eight years ago. But the revelations about Mr. Gunnlaugsson’s finances in the document leaks incited angry protests and raised pressure on him to quit the prime minister post, although he will remain the head of his party. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/06/world/europe/panama-papers-iceland.html
Clinton campaign chief linked to Russian bank listed in Panama Papers The head of Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign is linked to a Russian bank involved with an emerging international scandal, according to documents reported on Tuesday, Registration forms indicate that the Podesta Group signed up to lobby for the Sberbank of Russia in Washington about a month ago, in early March. The bank has been implicated in a scheme unearthed on Sunday in which leaders worldwide illegally stashed their assets overseas. The Podesta Group was founded by John Podesta, the chairman of Clinton's 2016 campaign for president and a chief of staff to former president Bill Clinton. His brother, Anthony Podesta, is listed as a lobbyist for the account on the March filing. The form, which was first discovered by the Washington Free Beacon, also lists three affiliated companies. Those include the Luxembourg-based SB International, Cyprus-based SBGB and Troika Dialogue Group, located in the Cayman Islands. http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/c...anama-papers/article/2587741?custom_click=rss
The Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, the collection of journalists responsible for initially reporting on the papers, have indicated that Troika Dialogue and Sberbank are tied to Russian President Vladimir Putin and his associates. Troika reportedly signed away assets to another company, Avto Holdings, owned by Sergei Roldugin, a godfather to Putin's daughter.
Hillary Clinton Ties Emerge In Panama Papers A billionaire and a Russia-controlled bank named in the Panama Papers have links to Hillary Clinton through two separate lobbying efforts — one through a Clinton-connected lobbying firm and another through Sidney Blumenthal. Clinton is linked to Sberbank, Russia’s largest bank, through Podesta Group, a lobbying firm co-founded by Clinton’s campaign chairman John Podesta and his brother, Tony Podesta, a major Clinton bundler. Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2016/04/05/hillary-clinton-ties-emerge-in-panama-papers/#ixzz451MvdmxE
I don't quite understand everything that's being divulged in these leaks. Some information seems like downright tax dodging while other skirts the subject directly and just seems creepy. One way or another, I hope some American politicians do end up getting caught in this scheme because it might actually lead to more transparency. The only way for banks like this to be able to operate in the shady-ass way they do, is by getting laws written in their favor.
If you had $1M and kept it in a bank in Venezuela, the government might have just taken it and left you with $0. Is that right?
In Iceland and the Ukraine the crime was tax evasion. These countries still hold their leaders accountable. When the leader of your country, or the woman who is running for leader of your country, keeps tens or hundreds of millions of dollars in the Cayman Islands to avoid paying her fair share of taxes, you'd have to be simple-minded to vote for her.
Swiss banker whistleblower: CIA behind Panama Papers http://www.cnbc.com/2016/04/12/swiss-banker-whistleblower-cia-behind-panama-papers.html
