Automatic exchange of bank account information could reveal more than just the locations and amounts of offshore money holdings. It could also improve beneficial ownership transparency because it can help identify individuals who choose to place their offshore holdings not directly under their...

This paper comparatively examines the registration and disclosure requirements of the ownership of legal entities (such as companies) and arrangements (such as trusts) across 133 jurisdictions, including all OECD and EU member states as of April 2020. Beneficial ownership transparency is widely...

In this paper we use the recently developed Bilateral Financial Secrecy Index to evaluate which countries supply most secrecy to EU Member States. Then, we assess how well-aimed are two of the EU's recent policy efforts to increase financial transparency: automatic Country-by-Country Reporting...

Two global transparency initiatives are underway that could help tackle financial crimes including tax evasion, money laundering and corruption: registration of beneficial ownership for companies (to identify the real persons owning or controlling such companies) and automatic exchange of bank...

Fully public country-by-country reporting would enable a dramatic shift in the accountability of both multinationals and tax jurisdictions. Estimates of the losses due to tax avoidance imply that lower-income countries would benefit disproportionately, as this transparency would offer powerful...