Queen caught in Paradise Papers
Offshore investments exposed by massive data leak
MILLIONS of dollars of the Queen’s private money is invested in offshore funds in Caribbean tax havens, a huge leak of financial documents referred to as the “Paradise Papers” has revealed.
The leak involves hundreds of politicians, celebrities and companies around the globe.
Documents show the Duchy of Lancaster, which manages investments for the Queen’s $A888 million (£520 million) private estate, invested about $17 million in the Cayman Islands and Bermuda-based funds.
They also show the monarch holds small investments, via funds, in businesses including off-licence chain Threshers and BrightHouse, which has been accused of exploiting people with mental health problems and learning disabilities.
The funds have not been disclosed in official Palace accounts. There is no suggestion they are illegal.
The revelation is likely to increase pressure on the Royal Family to improve transparency over their wealth and investments.
A spokesman for the Duchy of Lancaster said:
“We operate a number of investments and a few of these are with overseas funds. All of our investments are fully audited and legitimate.”
The 13.4 million documents lay bare how thousands of rich and powerful individuals invested vast sums of money in murky offshore structures. They reveal Donald Trump’s Secretary of Commerce, Wilbur Ross, owns a stake in a firm linked to Russian businessmen who are the subject of US sanctions.
The papers – obtained by German newspaper Suddeutsche Zeitung and being analysed by 100 media organisations across the world – come from the company registries of 19 tax havens and two offshore service providers.
Their release came less than two years after the leak of the Panama Papers caused shockwaves by exposing how dozens of well-known figures were hiding wealth in offshore funds.
In total, 1.4 terabytes of data have been released via the Paradise Papers – the second biggest leak of data in history. Only the Panama Papers were bigger.
Lord Ashcroft, the Conservative peer and a major donor to the party, was also named in the papers.
British Labour’s shadow chancellor, John McDonnell, said: “Despite all the government’s claims of cracking down on tax dodgers, this evidence confirms that tax avoidance is clearly continuing on an industrial scale.”