June 8th, 2009
Task Force member and
TJN fellow,
Nicholas Shaxson, co-authored a piece which appeared in the
Financial Times last week. Amazingly, I didn't pick it up until just now. Anyway, from the
FT:
Countries too dependent on extractive industries face three problems. Large foreign exchange inflows lead to the “Dutch disease”: local costs go up, so imports undercut domestic manufacturing and agriculture. Gyrating commodity prices play havoc with budgets. And mineral rents infest politics with corruption and conflict. As everyone fights over the mineral cake, good governance falls apart.
The solution is...
June 8th, 2009
The British territory of Bermuda signed a tax-information exchange agreement with the Netherlands today. This is Bermuda's 12th such agreement, thus fullfilling the OECD's requirement that states sign 12 information exchange agreements. According to
Dow Jones:
The Bermudan government said Monday that it has signed a tax information-exchange agreement with the Netherlands which allows it to meet international standards on tax-haven transparency...
The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development has said that tax havens must sign 12 such agreements with other nations to demonstrate they are committed to operating in a transparent manner and...
June 5th, 2009
The US government has brought charges against 3 individuals involved in a $1.3 billion tax fraud scheme. From the
Los Angeles Times:
Two principals of defunct Seattle investment management firm Quellos Group and a Los Angeles lawyer were indicted in a tax shelter scheme that allegedly created more than $1.3 billion in fraudulent losses for prominent clients, including media mogul and billionaire investor Haim Saban.
The operation was "one of the largest tax fraud schemes ever uncovered in this country," U.S. Atty. Jeffrey C. Sullivan in Seattle said Thursday.
The article continues:
The indictment names...
June 3rd, 2009
Dev Kar, lead economist at
Global Financial Integrity, appeared in the Economic Times of India today. From the
article:
The slowdown in economy is unlikely to affect remittances to India, a top banking official said.
"The global economic slowdown has limited impact on remittances to India, which is estimated at three per cent of India's GDP," Washington-based Global Financial Integrity (GFI), Lead Economist, Dev Kumar Kar said here.
Speaking on 'Impact of Financial Crisis on Global Business,' Kar said, "India has a highly resilient economy and the global slowdown will have limited impact...
