Economic security

Opinion: America’s super-rich are hiding trillions of dollars in plain sight

America’s super-rich are hiding their wealth from taxes quite legally here in the U.S., without having to send it to Panama, or the British Virgin Islands, or any other sunny place for shady people.

The big news this week in finance has been the so-called “Panama Papers,” the massive leak of documents from dubious Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca, an expert in offshore shell companies and tax-avoidance maneuvers. All sorts of famous foreign names have been caught up in the ongoing dump of documents online. British, Russian and Chinese politicians have been named. The prime minister of Iceland has resigned. Police have launched investigations in multiple countries.