Singapore is top haven for Australian tax dodgers

The Sydney Morning Herald, 1 May 2014

Australian companies sent almost $60 billion to related parties in tax havens in 2012, with payments to Singapore and Ireland featuring high on the list, according to new data.
Due to their low tax rates, Singapore and Ireland are used by multinationals, especially technology companies such as Google and Apple, as locations for sales hubs or corporate headquarters.
In 2012 almost $40 billion was sent to Singapore, which led the payments table despite being only Australia's fourth-largest import market that year, according to Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade data. Full story

Singapore ranked 5th in Financial Secrecy Index 2013

Financialsecrecyindex.com

1. Full report
2. Narrative Report on Singapore (PDF)

South Korean tycoon allegedly open 10 shell companies in Singapore and Hong Kong to evade tax

Ninemsn.com.au, 18 Jul 2013
Lee Jae-Hyun, 53, allegedly stashed away undeclared assets worth about 96 billion won ($A93.5 million) and evading taxes worth 54.6 billion won since 2004.
"This is a case where a business tycoon illicitly pocketed funds diverted from listed companies and evaded tax", prosecutor Park Jeong-Shik told journalists.
Lee created some 10 shell companies in foreign countries including Singapore and Hong Kong to avoid tax, he said. Full story

Singapore firms helped son of ex-Korean president to obtain offshare company in Caribbean - report

Publicintegrity.org, 5 Jun 2013
The eldest son of South Korea’s former President Chun Doo-hwan obtained an offshore company in the Caribbean in 2004 amid a tax evasion probe into his younger brother’s alleged involvement with their father’s bribery-fed slush fund.
Prosecutors are aggressively seeking the ex-president’s hidden assets in the face of an approaching statute of limitations deadline for his unpaid fine of 167.2 billion won ($149.3 million).
Chun Jae-kook, the oldest child of the former military strongman, became a director and shareholder of a secret company in the British Virgin Islands with the help of a law firm and an offshore services provider in Singapore, according to records obtained by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and reviewed by the Korea Center for Investigative Journalism (KCIJ), also known as Newstapa. Full story

Raiffeisen Bank International's CEO quits over three Singapore properties bought with offshore accounts

Hardware.itbusinessnet.com, 24 May 2013
VIENNA (Reuters) - Raiffeisen Bank International Chief Executive Herbert Stepic resigned on Friday in what he called an effort to spare his bank from negative publicity over personal property deals that triggered scrutiny by the lender and regulators.
Stepic, 66, again denied wrongdoing in using front companies in the Caribbean and Asia to buy flats in Singapore in 2006 and 2008 - deals exposed by the Offshore Leaks investigative journalism project - but said he decided to quit out of loyalty to Raiffeisen. Full story

Singapore to eclipse Switzerland as tax haven by 2020 - CNN International

CNN International, 14 May 2014
(CNN) -- As regulations tighten in Europe and the world's wealth moves to Asia, Singapore is tipped to overtake Switzerland to become the largest global offshore wealth center in terms of assets by 2020, according to London research firm, WealthInsight.
Although Switzerland easily retains its offshore banking crown with $2.8 trillion in assets under management, or 34% of the global private banking industry, Singapore is now the world's fastest growing market with $550 billion under management at the end of 2011, up from just $50 billion in 2000.
With $450 billion belonging to offshore clients, Singapore has grown to become the fourth largest offshore banking center globally. Full story

Hundreds of ultra-wealthy Britons hide billions in tax havens Singapore, the British Virgin Islands and the Caymans - report

Dailymail.co.uk, 10 May 2013
Hundreds of ultra-wealthy Britons are being investigated for tax evasion following the exposure of their secret offshore accounts.
International spy agencies are thought to have helped obtain a 'goldmine' of data that names high-profile multi-millionaires and their financial advisers.
The files show how the rich have hidden billions in Singapore, the British Virgin Islands and the Caymans.
More than 100 individuals have been identified so far – and have already been sent warning letters by HM Revenue & Customs. Full story

OPINION: Singapore ‘to Become New Switzerland’ - Sarah Krouse and Mike Foster

WSJ Blog, 7 May 2013
Wealth managers are stepping up their search for staff to expand in Asia as Singapore starts to overtake Switzerland as the world’s top private banking hub.
Singapore will overtake Switzerland as the biggest offshore wealth center in terms of assets under management by 2020, according to research firm WealthInsight. Full story

Banks in Singapore jettison rich clients as tax evasion crackdown looms

The Globe And Mail, 5 May 2013
Banks in Singapore are urgently scrutinizing their account holders as an imminent deadline on stricter tax evasion measures forces them to decide whether to send some of their wealthiest clients packing.
The Southeast Asian city-state has grown into the world’s fourth-biggest offshore financial centre but, with U.S. and European regulators on the hunt for tax cheats, the government is clamping down to forestall the kind of onslaught from foreign authorities that is now hitting Switzerland’s banks.
Before July 1, all financial institutions in Singapore must identify accounts they strongly suspect hold proceeds of fraudulent or willful tax evasion and, where necessary, close them. After that, handling the proceeds of tax crimes will be a criminal offence under changes to the city-state’s anti-money laundering law. Full story

Related:
Banks in Singapore agonise over rich clients in tax evasion clampdown - Reuters

OPINION: Singapore Will Replace Switzerland as Wealth Capital - Robert Frank

CNBC.com, 22 Apr 2013
Thanks in part to its generous tax regime, Singapore has been a millionaire haven for years. But a new report says the tiny island state may soon overtake Switzerland as the world's largest offshore wealth hub.
The report, by WealthInsight, a London-based research firm, says Singapore is the fastest growing wealth center in the world, with $550 billion in assets under management – up from $50 billion in 2000. About $450 billion of that is offshore. Full story

Related:

1. Singapore the new Switzerland? Rich turn to Asian havens - Crikey.com.au
2. Wealth Flees Switzerland for Shelter in Singapore - Yahoo! Finance

Super rich moving money out of Switzerland to Singapore

News.com.au, 18 Apr 2013
BY 2020 Switzerland will have lost its position as the number one destination for the wealth of the world's super rich to Singapore, a report says.
The report from private banking research group WealthInsight takes a deep dive into where money is moving in the most exclusive investment clubs in the world - in elite wealth management, family and multi-family offices. In 2011 it was a $US19.3 trillion ($A18.80 trillion) industry.
In 2011 Singapore had $US550 billion worth of private banking assets under management, in 2000 it had only $US50 billion. That's massive growth that WealthInsight doesn't see that slowing any time soon. Full story

Related:
Singapore to become wealth haven - Yahoo!7 News

Billionaires Among Thousands of Indonesians Found in Secret Offshore Documents

International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, 9 Apr 2013
Owners of corporations registered in tax havens include some linked to regime of the late dictator, Suharto.
Six were closely tied to the late dictator Suharto, who helped a special circle of Indonesians grow rich during his 31-year rule by granting economic fiefdoms to family and friends.
The billionaires are among nearly 2,500 Indonesians found in the files of Singapore-headquartered offshore services provider Portcullis TrustNet, which ICIJ has been analyzing and began reporting on last week. Full story

Switzerland fears commodities jobs will be lost to rival tax haven Singapore

Yahoo! Finance Singapore, 4 Apr 2013
Switzerland’s status as an international centre for jobs at commodities-trading companies is under threat from Singapore, a country whose low tax rates may give it a competitive edge in attracting commodities talent.
A new Swiss Federal Government report on the commodities sector stresses the importance of Switzerland remaining a global leader in commodities trading, and argues that the sector, which contributes about 3.5% of the country’s gross domestic product, should not be overburdened by regulations. Full story

Singapore among several well-known tax havens circling Cyprus' wounded banking sector

The New York Times, 31 Mar 2013
With a flood of emails and phone calls in recent days to lawyers and accountants here who make a living from helping wealthy Russians and others avoid taxes, competitors in alternative financial centers across Europe and beyond are promoting their own skills at keeping money hidden and safe.
"We are aware of the economic problems facing Cyprus at the moment," read one such message, from a law firm in Malta, a fellow member of the eurozone.
"We would like to propose an avenue of action for your consideration: offering corporate relocation to Malta," continued the business pitch, trumpeting Malta's low taxes and "flexible yet robust regime" for financial services.
Similar unsolicited offers have originated in well-known havens like Switzerland, Luxembourg and the Cayman Islands, as well as in a host of other locations, including Dubai and Singapore. Full story

OPINION: In India, dodging taxes is part of the game

The Economic Times, 2 Apr 2013
Among the rich, dodging taxes has become second nature, said Jamal Mecklai, CEO of Mecklai Financial, a Mumbai-based financial consulting firm. About 158,000 Indians are thought to be dollar millionaires, according to a 2012 Credit Suisse estimate, though some analysts believe the number is far higher.
"It's just taken as the reality" that most wealthy Indians are cheating, he said, adding that he pays everything he owes. India's top tax rate is currently 30 percent.
The size of India's underground economy and the amount of lost taxes is widely debated, but even the lowball figures are immense in a country with a nearly $2 trillion GDP. In recent studies, experts estimated that anywhere from 17 percent to 42 percent of the economy operates beneath the official radar.
Billions of dollars are widely thought to be hidden in Switzerland, Singapore and other tax havens. Full story

Related:
In India, dodging taxes is part of the game - NDTVProfit.com

Singapore is one of world's 7 most infamous tax havens - report

Theweek.com, 30 Mar 2013
Singapore
Population: 5,460,302
GDP: $326.7 billion
Tax incentives: Tax rates that max out at 20 percent and no capital gains taxes, according to Reuters.
Foreign cash: Reuters reported that estimates put "the amount of German money moving to Singapore in the double-digit billions," forcing the German government to step in and negotiate more transparent banking standards.
Famous "resident": Eduardo Saverin, who caused a public outcry when he renounced his U.S. citizenship and moved to Singapore right before the company he co-founded, Facebook, went public. At the time, Saverin's shares were expected to be worth around $3.84 billion, according to Bloomberg.
Full story

Singapore government denies claims it "facilitates" tax evasion

The Malaysian Insider, 22 Mar 2013
The Singapore government has rubbished claims made in an online video about corrupt land deals in Sarawak, in which a lawyer alleged that the island facilitates tax evasion in Malaysia by withholding information requested by the Malaysian government.
In response to media queries, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Ministry of Finance (MOF) said last night that the claims are “simply false”. Full story

Related:

1. Taib-Singaporegate: MAS has NOT denied S'pore's complicity - Where Bears Roam Free
2. Singapore denies being haven for Malaysian tax cheats - Inquirer.net 
3. Singapore says sting video’s claims about Sarawak’s Taib hiding money in the island are false - Malaysia Star 
4. Singapore: We're not the new 'Switzerland' - Malaysia Chronicle

VIDEO: S'pore implicated in 'sting' video exposing alleged land graft in Malaysia

Yahoo! News Singapore,21 Mar 2013
Singapore has been implicated in a covert investigation by a London-based NGO into shady land deals in Sarawak involving the state's Chief Minister Taib Mahmud and his family.
In a 16-minute "sting" video titled "Inside Malaysia's Shadow State" shot by Global Witness, investigators posing as foreign investors recorded snippets of their conversation with Taib's cousins and lawyers under the pretext of buying Sarawak land for hefty profit. Full story



Related:
Dirty money in not-so-squeaky-clean Singapore - Malaysiakini.com

French judges to seek Singaporean authorities' cooperation in fraud probe

Global Post, 20 Mar 2013
French authorities on Wednesday appointed two of the country's top examining magistrates to oversee an international probe into suspected tax fraud that has forced the country's budget minister to resign.
The magistrates in charge of the investigation, Roger Le Loire and Renaud Van Ruymbeke, will be seeking the cooperation of the Swiss and Singaporean authorities as they try to establish whether Cahuzac had accounts in either country. Full story

Related:
Swiss, Singapore help sought in French fraud probe - Gulf Times

French minister resigns over probe involving hiding money in Singapore's bank to avoid tax

Guardian.co.uk, 19 Mar 2013
The French minister in charge of clamping down on tax evasion resigned on Tuesday after allegations that he evaded taxes with a secret Swiss bank account.
Jérôme Cahuzac, the budget minister, who has vehemently and repeatedly denied the accusations, stood down hours after it was announced a legal investigation had been opened into the accusations.
The launching of legal proceedings for "fiscal fraud" did not name Cahuzac but centres on claims that he hid money from the French tax authorities, first in Switzerland and then in Singapore. Full story

Also read:
Singapore is new ‘Switzerland’ for investors to dodge taxes, says Malaysian lawyer - The Malaysian Insider

Related:

1. French official forced to resign in tax probe - The Washington Post
2. French Budget Minister Jerome Cahuzac resigns after tax fraud probe - Telegraph.co.uk