Systems of Tax Evasion and Laundering (STEAL)

RESEARCHERS• Leonard Seabrooke, Norwegian Institute for International Affairs

(PI), Norway.• Benjamin Skaar De Carvalho, Norwegian Institute for International

Affairs, Norway.• Virot Ali, Thammasat University, Thailand.• Attiya Waris, University of Nairobi, Kenya.• Don Marshall, The University of the West Indies, Barbados.• Ronen Palan, University of Birmingham, UK.• J.C. Sharman, Griffith University, Australia.• Duncan Wigan, Copenhagen Business School, Denmark.• Eleni Tsingou, Copenhagen Business School, Denmark.• Mike Rafferty, University of Sydney, Australia

OBJECTIVES

• how international entities use tax havens• the conditions under which tax evasion and

money laundering are most likely• where international institutions are on the

mark or off target in addressing evasion and laundering

Targets

• overview of the issue and target a comprehensive taxonomy of the Global Wealth Chains

• investigate the variety of ways that developing countries are linked to tax havens

• the impact of anti-money laundering regulations on developing countries

• the impact of on-going regulatory initiatives and regulatory changes

Global Wealth ChainsMarket Modular Relational Captured Hierarchy

Wealth1 Wealth1 Wealth1 Wealth1 Wealth1

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor

Price trumps setting Customized service for large assets

hold

Trust network established

Leads firms dominate form

Lead firm dominates supply and facilitation

Wealth2 Wealth2 Wealth2 Wealth2 Wealth2

Wealth3 Wealth3 Wealth3 Wealth3 Wealth3

Division of Work

• Europe (Seabrooke and Wigan)• East Asia (Palan and Ali)• Western Hemisphere (Sharman and Marshall)• Africa and Asia (Waris)• Anti-Money Laundering and Tax Evasion

(Tsingou, De Carvalho, Waris respectively)• Mapping GWCs and Offshore Financial

Innnovation (Rafferty and Wigan)

Methodology

• mixed methods approach, stress is placed on data from semi-structured expert interviews and document analysis with a case study approach

• existing databases will be explored for overall descriptive statistics from Civil Society Organizations, International Organizations, and, where possible, Private Associations;

Methodology

• semi-structured interviews will be conducted with representatives from entities engaged in Global Wealth Chains, including Hedge Funds, Investment Banks, Law Firms, Wealth Asset Managers, Tax Consultants, National, Supranational and International Regulators, Transnational Policy Communities, and National Tax and Anti-Money Laundering Authorities;

• primary documents will be studied, such as strategy papers, annual reports, and commercial publications from those named above.