It is an open secret that the very rich, and its powerful world they hide their financial situation from governments. The ICIJ released 11,5 million documents it calls "The Panama Papers" revealing people and situations.
The International Journal of Journalists' Consortium (ICIJ) has created an interactive publication that reveals how money moves through Panama and other common tax havens trying to cover traces of drug trafficking, arms and famous people.
Η leakage extends back 40 years and contains transactions, emails post officey, bank accounts, loans, transactions and untold sums of money.
There are many well-known names and it is reported that the leak was started by Mossack Fonseca's law firm. The names include associates of Russian leader Vladimir Putin who associate him with 2 billion dollar moves. Mentions the prime ministers of Iceland, Ukraine and Argentina that are linked to various companies to hide their assets, bonds and inheritances from a possible tax.
In total, there are 140 former and current politicians named in the documents.
The house of Mossack Fonseca, reports big names of FIFA and the big and loud Lionel Messi that seem to be named in some agreements. There are also known persons dealing with Mexican drug barons, terrorists or even North Korea.
Of course, there is nothing inherently wrong with offshore transactions as there are legal channels that allow individuals and businesses to own money in places far from their headquarters. But the documents show clear tax evasion, money laundering and other illegal activities, sometimes covered up by big banks like HSBC.
The leak is called 'The Wikileaks of the mega-rich' and will have a significant impact on many countries if the off-shore accounts are accepted.
https://panamapapers.icij.org/the_power_players/?lang=en#50
http://interactive.fusion.net/dirty-little-secrets/index.html
