U.S. readies bank rule on shell companies amid 'Panama Papers' fury

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

Deals | Wed Apr 6, 2016 8:32pm EDT

U.S. readies bank rule on shell companies amid 'Panama Papers' fury

ST. LOUIS | BY BRETT WOLF

The U.S. Treasury Department intends to soon issue a long-delayed rule forcing banks to seek the identities of people behind shell-company account holders, after the "Panama Papers" leak provoked a global uproar over the hiding of wealth via offshore banking devices.

A department spokesman said on Wednesday the rule would "soon" be turned over to the White House for review and issuance, but did not confirm any timetable for the initiative, which has taken years.

Governments around the globe have launched probes into possible financial wrongdoing after 11.5 million documents from the Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca, nicknamed the "Panama Papers," were leaked to the media and reports emerged Sunday. Mossak Fonseca has said it was the victim of a computer hack, and that it has consistently acted appropriately.

The papers offer "validation for those who have been screaming for a decade" about the need for financial institutions in the United States and elsewhere to address risks of money laundering, terror finance and other crime by identifying people who clandestinely control legal entities, former Treasury official Chip Poncy told Reuters.

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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-panama-tax-usa-banks-idUSKCN0X32U2

[Wilms]

1. "Long-delayed rule".

One would hope the article would have looked at that issue...but, no.