Financial Transparency Coalition

Former Wachovia Bank Anti Money-Laundering Officer, Martin Woods, discusses how Wachovia, Bank of America, and other large banking institutions sustain Mexican drug cartels. Woods left his position at Wachovia due to negative responses from Wachovia officials to Woods’ investigations of Mexican cartel money laundering within the institution.

Task Force Director Raymond Baker spoke to MBA students at Georgia Tech (his alma mater) earlier this month, as part of their IMPACT speaker series. Previous speakers have included such prestigious names as Warren Buffett and Vice President Al Gore. He begins by explaining how illicit financial flows hurt the developing world, as well as the scope and scale of the problem. Raymond then asks the future business leaders in the audience to think about global inequality and their role in the world. He contrasts the humanizing philosophy of Adam Smith with the hard utilitarianism of Jeremy Bentham.

Standing at the pump, watching the numbers tick away, do you ever wonder where the money goes? You're not alone: People on the other end of the pipeline are wondering too. While we feel the pinch in our pockets, citizens of oil-producing countries are often not seeing the profits.

Half of the world's trade passes through tax havens. Right now, they are hiding billions of dollars on behalf of criminals, dictators, wealthy individuals, and corporations. Watch this video, then find out what tax havens are, why they're so damaging and what we can do about it.