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Thomas Georges

Thomas Georges is FACT's policy and communications officer.

FACT Sheet: Anonymous Companies and National Security

The 2016 release of the Panama Papers was an avalanche of data on the nefarious use of anonymous companies for corrupt activities.  The leak showed that shell companies can represent an important nexus of corruption, money laundering, transnational organized crime, and terrorism, all of which directly harm U.S. foreign policy interests. Such companies have been used to divert U.S. security and overseas development funds from their intended purposes into the hands of those who seek to do the United States harm, and they can help fund the very insurgents and terrorists U.S. troops are fighting.

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FACT Sheet: Anonymous Shell Companies (August 2017)

America Is the Easiest Country in the World in which to Form an Anonymous Shell Company.
Creating a U.S. shell company takes less information than acquiring a library card.  A 2015 academic study found that the U.S. is the easiest country in the world for terrorists and criminals to open anonymous shell companies to launder their money with impunity.

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FACT Sheet: Differences in Beneficial Ownership Legislation

Creating a U.S. shell company takes less information than acquiring a library card.  A 2014 academic study found that the U.S. is the easiest country in the world for terrorists and criminals to open anonymous shell companies to launder their money with impunity.

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Sixteen Members of the House of Representatives Sent a Letter Urging the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) to Require Country by Country Tax Reporting

Sixteen members of the House of Representatives sent a letter to the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), urging them to require multinational companies to be more transparent in reporting where they pay taxes and book profits. Specifically, they called on the accounting body to require that companies disclose their taxes and profits on a country-by-country basis.

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Letter from the CEOs of Dow Chemical, Salesforce, Unilever, Allianz, Virgin, and the Kering Group supporting beneficial ownership disclosure.

Business leaders, financial institutions, investors and governments are taking action to end anonymous companies. On June 28, lawmakers introduced two bills in the United States House of Representatives and Senate which will make it harder for criminals to use anonymous shell companies as vehicles for fraud, crime, and corruption.

Today B Team Leaders and CEOs Andrew Liveris, Paul Polman, Marc Benioff, François-Henri Pinault, Oliver Bäte and Josh Bayliss sent a letter to key members of Congress in support of these legislative efforts.

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