Pandora Papers reveal U.S. is another ruling class tax haven

Washington, Oct 6 (Prensa Latina) A trove of nearly 12 million internal documents, e-mails, and memos from tax havens where the rich set up secret trusts to hide from taxes—while using their corporate clout to stick tax tabs to the rest of us—highlight stateside tax havens, notably South Dakota, available to the wealthy and well-connected.

October 6, 2021
07:29

The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) showed financial records of individuals who use South Dakota to protect their assets from local taxes or the authorities.

ICIJ reporter Will Fitzgibbon said in an interview with National Public Radio that one of the most astonishing revelations from Pandora Papers is that, for the first time, they are obtaining documents evidencing how the United States also has tax havens.

According to Fitzgibbon, Brazilians, Guatemalans, Colombians and Dominicans hide their fortunes in South Dakota, who are attracted by the publicity of having their money in ‘a secret tax haven’ in the United States.

Year after year in South Dakota, local lawmakers take steps drawn up by experts who provide more and more possibilities for money laundering and other crimes.

The documents analyzed showed how client assets in South Dakota have quadrupled to $360 billion over the past decade.

The investigation, released by The Washington Post, El País, BBC and The Guardian, also exposed that other states such as Alaska, Delaware, Nevada and New Hampshire compete in ‘financial confidentiality.’

pgh/Pll/jha / avr