Financial Transparency Coalition

We’ve known for a while that anonymous shell companies have been used to purchase property everywhere from London to Los Angeles. Funneling potentially illicit money into high end real estate has turned out to be an easy way to bypass many of the checks that might be necessary if you moved the money into a bank

Press Release for Immediate Release BRUSSELS—After months of negotiations, debate, and dialogue, the European Parliament has formally adopted the 4th Anti-Money Laundering Directive (AMLD), setting the stage for a public discussion on what further measures are needed to combat tax evasion, money laundering, and other illicit flows. “While the final adoption of the text is

We’ve been following the review of the European Anti-Money Laundering rules (AMLD) closely and reported on this fascinating policy-making process before. One of our key campaigns, the need for more transparency around those that own and control companies—known as beneficial ownership disclosure—is among the most important changes that are up for consideration. With so-called trilogue negotiations (behind closed-door negotiations between European parliamentarians and diplomats), this reform is entering a crucial phase. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem that the different sides of the negotiating table speak the same language when transparency is concerned. A quick recap: in March, the European Parliament...

Bitcoin can be sent from anywhere to anywhere at a very low cost, while simultaneously keeping a user’s identity hidden. This all sounds convenient for online payments, but without proper regulations, the use of crypto-currency could easily lead to tax evasion. Bitcoin was launched in 2009, as the world’s first crypto-currency. Satoshi Nakamoto, a pseudonym for the unknown person or group of people responsible, created the revolutionary currency. One key feature of Bitcoin is its decentralized nature, which doesn’t require regulators or bankers, resulting in low transaction costs. However, this also poses severe...