Panama papers

3 Major Implications of the Panama Papers Leak

The use and abuse of offshore accounts has long been controversial. The practice involves individuals or companies opening bank accounts in low-tax jurisdictions — of which Panama is one — to gain monetary privacy and avoid taxation. Though the avoidance itself is largely legal, shell companies and the like are known to be associated with illegal activities like tax evasion, money laundering, fraud, and the underground economy.

The Panama Papers cracked into a vault of well-kept secrets and potentially ill-gotten wealth, revealing vast corruption among the world’s political elite. The major revelation, however, is not that powerful humans hoard billions in offshore banks, but rather the detail in the proof of their dealings.

The Panama Papers are, in fact, larger than WikiLeaks in 2010 and the Snowden’s NSA leak in 2013 combined. The sheer breadth of information unveiled will help investigators understand how the industry evolved over time, and how individuals and corporations work together to shield their wealth.