Pandora Papers: Analyzing Their Impact

The impact of Pandora papers

Pandora paper is a journalistic investigation based on a major leak of about 12 million archives revealing the uncovered wealth, illegal tax avoidance and money laundering by some of the world’s richest and most influential people. It is the cooperation of more than 600 journalists from the world’s best media like Guardian, BBC Panorama, Le Monde, and the Washington Post from 117 countries under the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ). Throughout two years, more than 11.9 million files have been analysed, including text reports, spreadsheets, emails, and images.

The Pandora Papers gets its name from the Greek Mythology ‘Pandora’. When opened the box calamity and sorrow on the human race were lashed out. Similarly, these papers reveal the offshore interests and their exercises on tax shelter schemes. The name "Pandora" was given as these records might demonstrate to open a Pandora’s Box of investigations and claims in the future.

More than 600 journalists filtered the records conducting a gigantic worldwide investigation. There are declarations of various incorporations, lists of shareholders, invoices, passports, travel records, etc. They also focused on mysterious financial deals of more than 300 public authorities such as government ministers, judges, mayors, and military officers of more than 90 countries.

The Pandora papers revealed the inner function of the shadowed financial world. It opens the window into the hidden operations of a worldwide offshore economy that empowers some of the world’s richest people to conceal their wealth. The Pandora papers address the most recent and biggest financial data that have shaken the offshore world since 2013. 

Eminent persons exposed in the Pandora Papers

Pandora papers contained these popular entertainers Jackie Chan, Elton John, Ringo Starr, Shakira, Bono and Julio Iglesias. Lawyers from many of these celebrities have claimed that appropriate disclosures and taxes have been recorded on all offshore monies.

Beatles drummer Ringo Starr, with total assets around $400 million made two companies in the Bahamas. These were utilized to buy real estate including a private home in Los Angeles. He also established five trusts in Panama, three of which hold life insurance policies for the benefit of his kids, and another trust keeps earnings from royalties and live performances. The Qatari ruling family avoiding the tax due of £18.5 million had purchased two of England's most expensive mansions. Jordan's King Abdullah II secretly possessed 14 extravagant homes in the U.K. and the U.S. worth more than $106 million total. The nation of Jordan is among the top beneficiaries of foreign aid, getting $1.5 billion in help and military financing from the U.S. alone in 2020, and the EU has agreed to furnish the kingdom with more than $218 million in help. The prime minister of the Czech Republic failed to disclose an offshore investment company used to purchase two French manors for $16.3 million.

Numerous wealthy individuals might have valid reasons to legally protect revelations about their resources. The backers of greater financial transparency say that the framework is mishandled and vulnerable to corruption. Much of the offshore financial services are unregulated or self-controlled. Some of the bankers, auditors and accountants who work in the industry are previous authorities who know the gaps in the system.

Impact of Pandora papers

The Papers shed light on financial mystery laws in US states like South Dakota and Nevada that are tantamount to offshore jurisdictions. In the wake of the disclosures nine countries including India, Pakistan, Mexico, Spain, Brazil, Sri Lanka, and Australia have vowed to launch investigations.

The Pandora Papers uncovered the mode in which hundreds of politicians, celebrities, religious leaders and drug dealers have utilized shell companies and trusts to hide their wealth and investments. The Pandora Papers is all about individuals utilizing mystery jurisdictions, which we would call tax havens. South Dakota provides broad privacy protections for assets held in trusts, including the fixing of trust-related court documents and court procedures. Delaware is a well-known venue for enlisting limited liability companies, which can include shell organizations set up specifically to conceal assets or financial transactions.

 After the release of Pandora Papers, the state administrators of various countries were in search of complete data protection and privacy regulations for addressing this issue. Recently, a bipartisan bill named the Establishing New Authorities for Business Laundering and Enabling Risks to Security (ENABLERS) Act was introduced on October 6, 2021. If this act is passed, the Enablers Act would close the large number of the loopholes utilized by accountants, advertising firms, art and antiquities dealers, investment advisers, and some lawyers. Anti-corruption experts state that the Enablers Act will regulate these types of leaked revelations published by ICIJ.

Conclusion

The Pandora paper would accelerate measures to take steps to strengthen the international financial regulations, tax avoidance and other modes where rich persons can hide their assets. Most bankers help their clients to hide their assets. A person himself cannot hide them by their own a network of professionals is required to safeguard them in this mission.

In light of the Pandora Papers, financial experts advised the U.S. trusts to implement an investigation on the clients whose wealth was amassed in midst of the sound allegations of accusations of crimes or denial of human rights.

Given the immense measures of individual information handled by financial services. The financial services industry is the richest source of personally recognisable information both general and financial. Gathering and keeping this information has made the financial service industry an essential objective for data breaches and leaks such as the Pandora papers. In this way, financial services providers should cautiously analyze their practices with individual data and guarantee protection security and consistency.