FInancial Secrecy Index Archives

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Physician, heal thyself before attempting to heal others of corruption

20 Jul 2023, 12:27

By Janine Erasmus – CW Voices “Nigeria and Afghanistan – possibly two of the most corrupt countries in the world.” This politically naīve statement (as we shall see) was uttered by then British prime minister (PM) David Cameron ahead of an anti-corruption summit that took place there in May 2016. But having covered and studied Read more >

CW VOICES

Enablers galore: the countries that contribute to illicit financial crimes

20 Jul 2023, 12:27

By Janine Erasmus – CW Voices In part one of our latest mini-series, we posed the question: who are the real corrupt countries in today’s globalised context? We considered factors such as beneficial ownership transparency, the implementation of the African Union Anti-Corruption Convention, and pan-African collaboration in anti-corruption research. The usual suspects such as Nigeria Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

A global asset registry will boost equality and fight lawless wealth

02 Aug 2022, 13:37

Anonymous private wealth. Luxurious homes, state-of-the-art yachts and aircraft, priceless jewellery, valuable pieces of art, and more. Symbols of an ever-increasing global problem of financial inequality, and a proven driver also of corruption and tax abuse. Such wealth in the hands of a mere fraction of the global population is unsustainable – and as long Read more >

OPINIONS

Will Africa become Russian oligarchs’ new safe haven?

06 Jun 2022, 13:14

First published on Financial Transparency Coalition During the last decade, Russia has expanded its interests and presence in Africa by investing in the mining sector and increasing military support to fragile states, primarily through private military contractors and mercenaries. One of Africa’s most prominent private military groups is the Wagner Group, believed to be financed by one Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Developed countries highly complicit in financial secrecy

06 Jun 2022, 12:42

Illicit financial flows create an unjust society and further worsen inequality, especially for underdeveloped countries. This is the message from the Tax Justice Network (TJN), which released its 2022 Financial Secrecy Index (FSI) on 16 May. The FSI is a ranking of jurisdictions which fuel financial secrecy by helping individuals to hide their finances from Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

OECD a “rich countries club” helping firms commit tax abuse, TJN shows

10 May 2021, 12:51

In part 3 of our new mini-series on financial secrecy, we focus on the Corporate Tax Haven Index (CTHI), published by the Tax Justice Network (TJN) – the 2021 edition, released in March, is the second since 2019. Part 1 of the series looked at the definition of and gave information on secrecy jurisdictions and Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Global financial secrecy declines, SA remains stagnant on secrecy index

30 Apr 2021, 13:55

The term ‘secrecy jurisdiction’ might, for many, conjure up the image of a fortified bank vault deep underground in a Swiss city, or a tropical island teeming with wealthy individuals and located far away from troublesome laws and regulations. And indeed, the world’s greatest enabler of global financial secrecy is currently the sunny Cayman Islands, Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Financial secrecy – dangerous, destructive, and enabling corruption

21 Apr 2021, 10:21

In our new mini-series we’ll delve into the issue of financial secrecy – what it is, who enables it, how does it affect economies, which are the big culprits, and what role does corruption play? The series is based on two reports released by the Tax Justice Network (TJN) – the biennial Financial Secrecy Index, Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Global financial secrecy revealed in the 2018 FSI

01 Mar 2018, 16:10

The 2018 Financial Secrecy Index (FSI), an initiative of the Tax Justice Network (TJN), was launched recently. The FSI ranks jurisdictions according to their secrecy and the scale of their offshore financial activities. It shies away from being political, positioning itself instead as a tool for understanding global financial secrecy, tax havens or secrecy jurisdictions, Read more >