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Structural studies of the global networks exposed in the Panama papers

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Re: Structural studies of the global networks exposed in the Panama papers

#11

Post by jariel »

seibelj wrote: post #10

There will always be offshore entities with strong rule of law (Cayman) because multinational companies need a neutral ground to settle disputes with competent judges without the whims of each company’s home base screwing it up. That’s the most generous and ethical explanation for the continued support and existence of offshore judication. The unpopular reason is that offshore countries offer lower taxes and favorabl…

"multinational companies need a neutral ground to settle disputes with competent judges without the whims of each company’s home base screwing it up."

This is definitely not it. The largest entities with the most IP at stake don't duke it out in the Cayman islands.

Moreover, Cayman - and any other offshore - does not have nearly the sophistication to handle complicated disputes.

'Sound rule of law' is one thing, but when laws are not very clear or complex, without a lot of historical rulings, without a sophisticated judicial + participants ... then it's not going to be part of the value add.

If you're really concerned about 'rule of law' then you want to be in EU/US/UK, possibly Canada, Australia, Switzerland and you don't even want it to touch other jurisdictions.

Re: Structural studies of the global networks exposed in the Panama papers

#12

Post by hashtagmarkup »

davisr wrote: post #9
wombatmobile wrote: post #7

> In recent history, the Panama Papers have comprised one of the largest and most influential leaks detailing information on offshore entities, company officers and financial (and legal) intermediaries, and has led to a global exposé of corruption and tax evasion. A systematic analysis of this information can provide valuable insights into the structure and properties of these entities and the relations between them.…

It means the corruption is spread far and wide, without a central group of 'authority'.

It means the author has to worry about car bombs from more than a single entity.

Re: Structural studies of the global networks exposed in the Panama papers

#13

Post by ncmncm »

seibelj wrote: post #10

There will always be offshore entities with strong rule of law (Cayman) because multinational companies need a neutral ground to settle disputes with competent judges without the whims of each company’s home base screwing it up. That’s the most generous and ethical explanation for the continued support and existence of offshore judication. The unpopular reason is that offshore countries offer lower taxes and favorabl…

They have it right.

The less power the state asserts, the more is left for the biggest corporations to use, throwing their weight around, dominating everybody smaller.

Re: Structural studies of the global networks exposed in the Panama papers

#14

Post by ncmncm »

BadassFractal wrote: post #8
roenxi wrote: post #2

Accounting has a rich history going back approximately 7,000 years [0]. This decade will get an entry in that history as "and in the early 21th century, it became a matter of public record how rich people actually managed their money". It might be easy to underestimate how tectonic papers like this are. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_accounting

I haven't been following the fallout of the Panama Papers leak, but has anything concrete (and positive for us vanilla tax payers) actually come out of it? Or did the ultra wealthy simply move their tax evasion schemes to a different set of countries?

Just different agencies at the same countries.

Re: Structural studies of the global networks exposed in the Panama papers

#15

Post by civilized »

wombatmobile wrote: post #7

> In recent history, the Panama Papers have comprised one of the largest and most influential leaks detailing information on offshore entities, company officers and financial (and legal) intermediaries, and has led to a global exposé of corruption and tax evasion. A systematic analysis of this information can provide valuable insights into the structure and properties of these entities and the relations between them.…

It means the authors were trained to plot degree distributions of any network they come across, and hey, here's another network, let's plot some degree distributions

Re: Structural studies of the global networks exposed in the Panama papers

#16

Post by jariel »

The Panama papers really only make sense in the context of multinationals operating from regimes with some degree of transparency, i.e. the West, Japan, Singapore etc..

'Most' of the problems are in regimes where everything is nicely hidden i.e. Dubai, Moscow, anywhere in China.

Why would anyone do banking in Dubai, where there are absolute Monarchs who can do whatever, whenever, with their money, finances information, when they can go to US/UK/EU and have full legal protections? Because 'no transparency'. And that's it. Billions of USD intended for Afghanistan investment end up in bank accounts there etc..

What we really need are the 'Dubai Papers'.

Re: Structural studies of the global networks exposed in the Panama papers

#17

Post by seibelj »

jariel wrote: post #11
seibelj wrote: post #10

There will always be offshore entities with strong rule of law (Cayman) because multinational companies need a neutral ground to settle disputes with competent judges without the whims of each company’s home base screwing it up. That’s the most generous and ethical explanation for the continued support and existence of offshore judication. The unpopular reason is that offshore countries offer lower taxes and favorabl…

"multinational companies need a neutral ground to settle disputes with competent judges without the whims of each company’s home base screwing it up." This is definitely not it. The largest entities with the most IP at stake don't duke it out in the Cayman islands. Moreover, Cayman - and any other offshore - does not have nearly the sophistication to handle complicated disputes. 'Sound rule of law' is one thing, but…

I don’t think you understand how offshore works. You seem like someone who saw a bunch of YouTube videos. For example all re-insurance companies that back the US insurance markets are Bermuda companies, and this is explicitly OK in the tax code.

Re: Structural studies of the global networks exposed in the Panama papers

#18

Post by jariel »

seibelj wrote: post #17
jariel wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"multinational companies need a neutral ground to settle disputes with competent judges without the whims of each company’s home base screwing it up." This is definitely not it. The largest entities with the most IP at stake don't duke it out in the Cayman islands. Moreover, Cayman - and any other offshore - does not have nearly the sophistication to handle complicated disputes. 'Sound rule of law' is one thing, but…

I don’t think you understand how offshore works. You seem like someone who saw a bunch of YouTube videos. For example all re-insurance companies that back the US insurance markets are Bermuda companies, and this is explicitly OK in the tax code.

I worked at a company that payed out $700M in an IP dispute involving offshore entities (and worked for a while in an offshore entity, Monaco, though it's a different kind of 'offshore').

Edit: FYI your 'Bermuda' argument doesn't help make your point re: 'neutral ground IP law'. The reason companies exist 'offshore' is to avoid taxation and scrutiny, which is why they are there.

Re: Structural studies of the global networks exposed in the Panama papers

#19

Post by idclip »

hashtagmarkup wrote: post #12
davisr wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It means the corruption is spread far and wide, without a central group of 'authority'.

It means the author has to worry about car bombs from more than a single entity.

Hah.

Re: Structural studies of the global networks exposed in the Panama papers

#20

Post by seibelj »

jariel wrote: post #18
seibelj wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don’t think you understand how offshore works. You seem like someone who saw a bunch of YouTube videos. For example all re-insurance companies that back the US insurance markets are Bermuda companies, and this is explicitly OK in the tax code.

I worked at a company that payed out $700M in an IP dispute involving offshore entities (and worked for a while in an offshore entity, Monaco, though it's a different kind of 'offshore'). Edit: FYI your 'Bermuda' argument doesn't help make your point re: 'neutral ground IP law'. The reason companies exist 'offshore' is to avoid taxation and scrutiny, which is why they are there.

And I’ve worked for companies with extensive offshore arrangements, primarily for tax minimization and regulatory clarity. It sounds like a judge disputed your prior company’s issues!
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