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    Categories>Finance & Economics>The Panama papers: breaking the story of how the rich & powerful hide their money
    The Panama papers: breaking the story of how the rich & powerful hide their money book cover

    The Panama papers: breaking the story of how the rich & powerful hide their money by Bastian Obermayer Summary

    The Panama papers: breaking the story of how the rich & powerful hide their money
    Bastian Obermayer
    4.08 (4381 Reviews)
    FinancePoliticsEconomics
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    Overview of The Panama papers

    The Panama Papers reveals how a 2.6-terabyte data leak - the largest in history - exposed 140 politicians hiding billions offshore. This Pulitzer Prize-winning investigation triggered global outrage, toppled Iceland's prime minister, and changed financial regulations worldwide. What secrets are the wealthy hiding from you?

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    Best quote from The Panama papers

    “

    The problem is that a lot of this stuff is legal, not illegal.

    ”
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    Imagine receiving a cryptic message asking if you're "interested in data" - then discovering you've been handed the keys to exposing a secret financial world. This is exactly what happened to journalist Bastian Obermayer, triggering what would become the largest journalistic collaboration in history. The Panama Papers - 11.5 million leaked documents from Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca - revealed how the wealthy and powerful hide their assets through elaborate offshore structures. This wasn't just about individual wrongdoing; it exposed a shadow financial system where the privileged few effectively opt out of taxes and regulations that govern everyone else. The revelations toppled governments, embarrassed world leaders from Vladimir Putin to David Cameron, and sparked global outrage. As President Obama noted following the leak, "The problem is that a lot of this stuff is legal, not illegal." The Panama Papers pulled back the curtain on a parallel financial reality - one designed to be impenetrable, yet suddenly laid bare for all to see.

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