Shocking disclosure! Records have shown that a large number of celebrities and leaders have offshore accounts. You may be astonished that a race car driver, a high profile Bollywood actor and Ukraine’s president all seem to be sailing in the same boat of tax evasion.
The reports talk about details of millions of documents highlighting how low tax states like Cayman Islands and Panama host shell companies for these high profile people. Heard about Sky Fall or Goldfinger? We are not talking about the James Bond 007 movies here; these are the names that are used to disguise these clandestine “tax evasion” investments.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, came into the limelight over the issue and he has been vehemently denying the allegation. In 2014, when Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko had run for office he had assured his voters that he would dispose off his businesses but he never did so. Reports are speculating that he just transferred the proceeds offshore. Now he has stated that when he had become president, he had created the offshore dealing because he wanted a blind trust to put his business into.
Offshore accounts generally hide the owner’s identity and it is an illegal manner in which a tax payer can pay taxes where the money is being earned. The gains that have no accountability can now be laundered or hidden away in these offshore accounts.
During a Tokyo visit, Poroshenko gave a statement saying that this was normal procedure and “If we have anything to be investigated, I am happy to do that. But this is absolutely transparent from the very beginning. No hidden account, no associated management, no nothing.” Well, in no way has the law been violated in this case but Poroshenko is surely a part of the spotlight and thus triggered a debate worldwide about these offshore companies and accounts.
Another person a part of the spotlight is Nico Rosberg , Formula One driver and none other than our famous Bollywood personality Amitabh Bachchan.
According to the Indian Express, this star of B-Town has been linked to 4 companies that are registered in these tax saving areas. Late Tuesday night, clearing that he had paid all the necessary taxes, Amitabh Bachchan tweeted “It is possible that my name has been misused.”
Bachchan cleared his position in a press statement through his PR firm saying “I do not know any of the companies referred to by Indian Express —
I have never been a director of any of the above stated companies. It is possible that my name has been misused.” The statement also includes “I have paid all my taxes including on monies spent by me overseas. Monies that I have remitted overseas have been in compliance with law, including remittances through LRS, after paying Indian taxes. In any event the news report in Indian Express does not even suggest any illegality on my part.”
Spanish movie director Pedro Almodovar, leader Marine Le Pen, his father father, Jean-Marie Le Pen, Uruguayan lawyer Juan Pedro Damiani, all may be under the scanner for having a connection with Mossack Fonseca, the corporate service provider, who seems to have helped in the creation of offshore accounts for these renowned people.
