Transparency is a critical piece of the puzzle in the fight against extreme poverty. Yet, the question of how transparency can be instituted in practical ways continues to be challenging.
Transparency
In 2014, we revealed a shocking scandal. Every year, more than a trillion dollars is siphoned out of developing countries.
A trillion! That’s twelve zeros: 1,000,000,000,000. Imagine what that could mean to countries working their way out of extreme poverty.
We’re not talking about international aid, which is making a real and tangible difference, but money taken from developing countries’ own budgets and economies. Shady deals for natural resources like oil and minerals; anonymous shell companies used to launder dirty money;...
Corrupt politicians and dodgy businesses are stealing millions of dollars from the countries they are supposed to serve, using phantom firms and tax havens to do it.
They often then buy valuable property overseas in the most desirable parts of the world. Phantom firms, fake companies set up to hide the identity of the people who control them, are used to move money out of developing countries and into bank accounts, which can then be used to buy properties like these.
The...
Ever wondered where the profits from dodgy deals and crime end up? Here are 11 places that have been used to hide ill-gotten gains.
As we launch a new campaign to stop the Trillion Dollar Scandal that deprives people in developing countries of more than $1 trillion each year, we’re digging into the web of secrecy that makes it all possible.
Some were easy to find, but as you might expect others were tougher and took investigators years to track down.
1. 40...