The FACT Coalition

Muddled Markets

Investors are at an increasing risk due to the lack of information disclosed by companies about their tax practices, according to this November 2018 report published by the Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency Coalition (FACT Coalition). Titled “Muddled Markets: Investors Increasingly at Risk from Lack of Disclosures about Corporate Tax Practices,” the report finds that multinational companies have become increasingly reliant on offshore tax avoidance practices to boost short-term earnings in recent years, yet disclosure requirements haven’t kept pace with this changing world.

As governments around the globe struggle with growing budget deficits, tax authorities are increasingly cracking down on aggressive tax avoidance practices, which can have a significant impact on shareholder value. At the same time, shifting national policies around international taxation — including, but not limited to, the recent tax overhaul in the United States — create complexity and uncertainties with respect to returns for investors.

Read More

Towards a Sustainable Economy

A Review of Comments to the SEC’s Disclosure Effectiveness Concept Release
The FACT Coalition joined eight other groups—the AFL-CIO; Americans for Financial Reform; the Center for American Progress; Ceres; the International Corporate Accountability Roundtable; Patriotic Millionaires; Public Citizen; and US SIF: The Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment—in releasing a report analyzing the more than 26,000 comments received in response to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s April 2016 concept release on “Business and Financial Disclosure Required by Regulation S-K”.

Read More

A Taxing Problem for Investors

Shareholders Increasingly at Risk from Lack of Disclosure of Corporate Tax Practices
Investors are at an increasing risk due to the lack of information disclosed by companies about their tax practices, according to this September 2016 report published by the Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency Coalition (FACT Coalition).  Titled “A Taxing Problem for Investors: Shareholders Increasingly at Risk from Lack of Disclosure of Corporate Tax Practices,” the report finds that multinational companies have become increasingly reliant on offshore tax avoidance practices to boost short-term earnings in recent years, yet disclosure requirements haven’t kept pace with this changing world.  As governments around the globe struggle with growing budget deficits, tax authorities are increasingly cracking down on aggressive tax avoidance practices, which can have a significant impact on shareholder value.

Read More