Global super rich hiding $21 trillion offshore: report
24 Jul 2012
The world's super-rich elite is hiding a whopping £13 trillion ($21 trillion) in secretive offshore accounts, a new study conducted by James Henry, British economist and an expert on tax havens, revealed.
The enormous wealth hidden in tax havens equals the combined gross domestic products of two of the world's largest economies United States and Japan.
The study, initiated by British activist group Tax Justice Network and prepared by the former chief economist at the consultancy McKinsey, is based on data from diverse sources including the Bank of International Settlements, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, United Nations and central banks.
''We're basically talking about a black hole in the world economy,'' Henry told NBCNews.com.
Henry's report The Price of Offshore Revisited disclosed a total hidden wealth of at least £13 trillion, but said it could go as high as £20 trillion.
The report said that the assets of high-net-worth-individuals are pumped into secretive places such as Switzerland and the Cayman Islands with the help of professional enablers in private banking, legal, accounting and investment industries, taking advantage of the growing relaxations in cross-border tax rules across the globe.
