Financial Transparency Coalition

Last week, China executed Wen Qiang, a former high-ranking member of the Chongqing judiciary on charges which included accepting bribes, protecting criminal gangs and even rape. The execution of Wen, charged with taking over 12 million yuan ($1.76 million) in bribes, is the climactic result of a massive crackdown on corruption in Chongqing which has resulted in nearly 100 officials being prosecuted. Despite the breadth of corruption in Chongqing, however, this is not an isolated problem in China. Rather, it is part of a...

LONDON—A May 2010 report from Christian Aid, Blowing the Whistle: Time’s Up for Financial Secrecy, reveals how the same tax-haven secrecy that allows football club owners to hide their business practices – and even their identities – is also facilitating massive tax dodging in developing countries.

Our colleagues at CCFD-Terre Solidaire in France have prepared a progress report (in French) on what has changed since the G-20 Summit in London last year. Sadly, it does not make for happy reading. The report addresses 12 questions, as follows:

1. Have we seen the end of tax havens?
2. What purpose have the OECD black and grey lists served?
3. Are tax authorities able to tackle evaders more easily?
4. Is G-20 capable of publishing a full and proper list of tax havens?
5. What have been major success stories for tax authorities since...

(Reuters) - Over the past year, the number of countries on an Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development "gray list" of tax havens that have not fully implemented internationally agreed upon tax standards has dropped to 17 from more than 40.