The massive leak of offshore financial records that came to light in the past week has pierced what was once an opaque domain. Politicians, business people and celebrities are seeing their dealings in tax havens laid bare. Here's a sampling of some of the global reaction.
Britain
British PM David Cameron (Michel Euler/Associated Press) Pressure has ratcheted up on Prime Minister David Cameron to overhaul the half-dozen tax havens under British dominion. Some of the world's biggest offshore locales — the Cayman Islands, the Isle of Man, the British Virgin Islands (BVI), Bermuda — are either U.K. territories or Crown dependencies. The cascade of revelations this week about shady dealings in the BVI in particular has elicited calls for action.
Canada
Senator Pana and husband Tony Merchant Liberal Senator Percy Downe said he wants his caucus colleague, Senator Pana Merchant, to explain herself following an exclusive CBC News report based on the leaked files. The report disclosed that Merchant was the beneficiary of an offshore trust set up in the Cook Islands by her husband, Regina class-action lawyer Tony Merchant. The federal government also urged journalists to hand it the list of around 450 Canadians named in the leaked records.
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Colombia
Colombia's ex-president Alvaro Uribe (Jaime Saldarriaga/Reuters) Former president Alvaro Uribe went on the defensive after it was reported that his two sons incorporated a company in the British Virgin Islands while he was still in office. The company was formed as part of a handicrafts business that "they've been involved in since they were children," Uribe said. "They are not tax evaders."
Georgia
Bidzina Ivanishvili, Georgia's prime minister (David Mdzinarishvili/Reuters) The government issued a statement defending billionaire Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili after he was listed as a past director of an offshore company created 2006 in the British Virgin Islands. Ivanishvili, who came to power in October, didn't report any ties to Bosherston Overseas Corp. on his official disclosures because he severed all links before he took office, the statement said.
Germany
German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble (Markus Schreiber/Associated Press) The country's Finance Ministry called on media outlets that are sharing the millions of leaked files to release the records to national tax agencies. Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said he is "pleased" with the revelations about offshore accounts, but a spokesman said tax agencies around the world want to "start their investigations" to potentially recoup the sums they might be owed.
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Greece
The government, under pressure from members of parliament, announced it will take steps to curtail offshore tax dodging. An assessment of 107 Greek-run or -owned offshore companies named in the leaked data found that only four were properly registered with Greece's authorities. It also found new details on how some Greeks use offshore companies to trade in bonds and avoid taxes on the profits.
Mongolia
Bayartsogt Sangajav, deputy Speaker of the Mongolian parliament (Edwin Tuyay/Getty) The country's deputy parliamentary Speaker, who served as finance minister until last summer, says he's considering resigning following revelations about his secret offshore company and its Swiss bank account. Sangajav Bayartsogt acknowledged "I should not have opened that account," and disclosed that it held $1 million at one point.
Netherlands
Dutch bank ABN Amro says companies it sets up 'always comply with local and international laws.' (Jock Fistick/Getty) Two of the biggest Dutch banks, ING and ABN Amro, have had to face questions over their offshore dealings. The names and personal information of 21 current and former members of ING's board of directors were among the leaked offshore records, which show that both banks helped set up dozens of offshore companies for clients. ABN Amro said in a statement: "The companies are set up for international customers and always comply with local and international laws."
Philippines
Imee Marcos, daughter of the late Ferdinand Marcos (Romeo Ranoco/Reuters) A national commission charged with recouping the ill-gotten riches of the country's former dictator, the late Ferdinand Marcos, says it will investigate Marcos's daughter following divulgences about her offshore dealings. Maria Imelda Marcos Manotoc, known as Imee Marcos, is the governor of a northern Philippine province. She failed to report that she's the beneficiary of an offshore trust on her annual disclosure statements.
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