Pandora Papers: Hidden riches of world leaders ‘exposed’

A group of 600 investigative journalists on Sunday published new papers over the alleged involvement of a number of world leaders including Russian President Vladimir Putin and King Abdullah II of Jordan and other high-profile individuals in tax havens.

In an “unprecedented leak”, the financial secrets of 35 current and former world leaders, more than 330 politicians and public officials in 91 countries and territories have been exposed, according to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ). The massive trove of private financial records has been dubbed as “Pandora Papers”. The investigation involves more than 600 journalists from 117 countries as well as over 11.9 million leaked files “covering every corner of the globe”.

The financial records expose vast reaches of the secretive offshore system used to hide billions of dollars from tax authorities, creditors, criminal investigators and citizens around the world. The revelation includes more than USD 100 million spent by King Abdullah II of Jordan on luxury homes in Malibu, California, and other locations. It also includes the revelation of cash secretly owned by the leaders of the Czech Republic, Kenya, Ecuador, and other countries; and a waterfront home in Monaco acquired by a Russian woman who gained considerable wealth after she reportedly had a child with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The files detail the financial activities of Russian President Putin’s “unofficial minister of propaganda” and more than 130 billionaires from India, Russia, the United States, Mexico, and other nations. As per the reports, the Pandora Papers also uncovered dealings of the Presidents of Ukraine, Kenya, and Ecuador, the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic, and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair.