Follow the money

摘要

Among the sins that have most angered the austerity-weary everywhere is the use of undeclared offshore accounts to stash the wealth of the rich. Greeks were particularly enraged when data stolen from Swiss banks showed in 2010 that politicians and other prominent Greek figures had been taking advantage of Switzerland's strict banking-secrecy laws. Their new prime minister was in tune with the times when he promised war on tax-dodg-ing "oligarchs" during his campaign. But the rich and tax-shy already have fewer places to hide. America's Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (fatca), passed in 2010, forces thousands of foreign financial institutions to report American clients' balances to its tax authority, the irs, or face stiff penalties. The European Union is strengthening its savings-tax directive, which requires member states to exchange information. And last year more than 80 countries agreed on a "common reporting standard" (crs) set by the oecd, a club of mostly rich countries. Though not loophole-free, the crs is "potentially a giant step forward", says the Tax Justice Network, a campaign group.