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HSBC Banking Leak Shows Tax Avoidance, Dealings With Criminals
An anonymous reader writes: Data in a massive cache of leaked secret bank account files lift the lid on questionable practices at a subsidiary of one of the world's biggest financial institutions. HSBC's Swiss banking arm did the following: Routinely allowed clients to withdraw bricks of cash, often in foreign currencies of little use in Switzerland; Aggressively marketed schemes likely to enable wealthy clients to avoid European taxes; Colluded with some clients to conceal undeclared "black" accounts from their domestic tax authorities; and provided accounts to international criminals, corrupt businessmen and other high-risk individuals. For its part, HSBC admits that it is liable for past transgressions but claims its practices have changed.
So shady characters were using Swiss bank accounts? Really?
In other news some of the users of the pirate bay were found to be distributing copyrighted material. Also the sun found to be yellow.
HSBC Banking Leak Shows Tax Avoidance, Dealings With Criminals
In other words, just another day of business as usual...
Not to defend Ross Ulbricht, but given what's coming to light, does anybody really doubt that HSBC enabled more drug trafficking than a dozen Silk Roads? And that's not even counting things like the arms trade and tax evasion.
Steal ten thousand dollars and you go to jail for decades. Steal ten billion and you get a slap on the wrist and an engraved invitation to the next campaign fundraising dinner.
It's only illegal if you get caught. Even if you DO get caught, remember that rich people don't go to jail.
Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups.
People should always be trying to avoid taxes. Blindly paying whatever taxes are assessed is foolish and will always lead to the levying of more and more taxes because due to greed and human nature. Governments are incapable of ever lowering taxes in any real or meaningful way. The only way to avoid runaway taxation is perpetual tax avoidance. Many people go so far as to consider taxation theft, and avoidance patriotic.
As I get older, it becomes easier to understand why most revolutions start with hanging a bunch of the rich and powerful from lampposts.
To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it