Financial Transparency Coalition

Our colleagues at Citizens for Tax Justice (CTJ) released a clear summary of the tax provisions in recent Capitol Hill jobs legislation. As they note, there have been a number of small pieces of legislation passing through the Congress, so it's been difficult to keep up with it all. As many of these bills have tax evasion measures included in them as "pay-fors," it's refreshing to have CTJ clearly break it down for us. You can download the summary here...

Money-laundering insider: Illicit money flowing out of Switzerland World Radio Switzerland, March 19, 2010

UBS says IRS has 20 Swiss banks in its sights Associated Press, March 19, 2010

Credit Suisse clients, staff face German tax probe Reuters, March 19, 2010

Most Wealthy Britons Are Unaware of Liechtenstein Disclosure Program, Firm Says Tax Analysts, March 19, 2010

Tax officials find bonanza of offshore income The Globe and Mail, March 19, 2010

Tax transparency: Global Forum launches country-by-country reviews OECD, March 18, 2010

U.S. Adds Two Firms in Gaza to Terror...

Washington — A new report released today from Global Financial Integrity (GFI) on private, non-resident deposits in secrecy jurisdictions finds that the United States, United Kingdom, and the Cayman Islands are the most popular destinations for financial deposits by non-residents. Switzerland, Luxembourg, and Hong Kong also make the top 10 list of destinations. “This report looks at deposits held offshore by private entities on a country-by-country basis, achieving a level of specificity previously unavailable to the public,” explained GFI director Raymond Baker. “With overall deposits in secrecy jurisdictions currently approaching US$10 trillion, this report measures a sizable...

The Senate’s passage Wednesday of legislation requiring increased reporting and withholding by offshore financial centers marks a significant step forward in efforts to combat US tax evasion and banking secrecy, said Global Financial Integrity. The measures, part of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) subtitle of the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act—which went to the President for his signature yesterday—are also predicted to generate $8.7 billion over 10 years. “We applaud Congress for moving forward on FATCA,” said Global Financial Integrity (GFI) director Raymond Baker. “We hope that the majority of non-US financial institutions choose...