Super-Rich Hold Up To $32 TRILLION In Offshore Havens: Report

Via: Reuters

Rich individuals and their  families have as much as $32 trillion of hidden financial assets  in offshore tax havens, representing up to $280 billion in lost  income tax revenues, according to research published on Sunday.

The study estimating the extent of global private financial  wealth held in offshore accounts – excluding non-financial  assets such as real estate, gold, yachts and racehorses – puts  the sum at between $21 and $32 trillion.

The research was carried out for pressure group Tax Justice  Network, which campaigns against tax havens, by James Henry,  former chief economist at consultants McKinsey & Co.

He used data from the World Bank, International Monetary  Fund, United Nations and central banks.

The report also highlights the impact on the balance sheets  of 139 developing countries of money held in tax havens by  private elites, putting wealth beyond the reach of local tax  authorities.

The research estimates that since the 1970s, the richest  citizens of these 139 countries had amassed $7.3 to $9.3  trillion of “unrecorded offshore wealth” by 2010.

Private wealth held offshore represents “a huge black hole  in the world economy,” (yeah, ya think?) Henry said in a statement.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/22/super-rich-offshore-havens_n_1692608.html

.