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Transparency

Panama Papers and the Need for Tax Haven Reform

In the Panama Papers, the unprecedented release of 11 million documents from a law firm in Panama, we see in great detail how the secret accounts of the global elite launder money and hide corruption.

After initial coverage focused on international figures like Vladimir Putin and Lionel Messi and their connections to secretive accounts, a June 5 New York Times article shed yet more light on how individual U.S. citizens are among those hiding their millions abroad.

The Times showed that over the past decade, the now famous Mossack Fonseca had at least 2,400 U.S.

End Expensive and Dangerous Shell Companies

Most businesses have nothing to hide, but if you do have something to hide, it's easy: You just set up an anonymous shell company -- which in America, requires less personal information than it takes to get a library card.

Since you don't even have to report who owns the company, anonymous shell companies are a favorite tool to hide all sorts of unsavory behaviors, from terrorism and drug cartels to tax dodging.

But now we have a way to fight back. Take action to end anonymous shell companies.

This Sunday on 60 Minutes, shocking undercover footage showed how easy it is to use