At least 55 billion euros in damages thought – much more than in the past. And not only in Germany and Denmark, but nine other countries in Europe are affected: The”Cum-Ex”tax scandal runs deep and wide.
It’s tax tricks of financial jugglers, which are of the Profit comes solely from taxpayers ‘ money. And it is very much money is lost to the Treasury in at least ten European countries. The Trick with the erudite name of “Cum-Ex” was applied in Germany as in France, Spain, Italy and Austria, as well as in Finland, Norway and Switzerland and in other countries. The known reports of European media Research network show now.
In Europe, the damage adds up, according to the research of over 55 billion euros, when you add other opaque tax structures. The German Finance Ministry had so far given more than five billion euros in tax had escaped, before the gap in the law in 2012, was closed. Christoph Spengel, a tax expert at the University of Mannheim, according to its own calculations, that only the German tax authorities between 2001 and 2016, at least 31.8 billion euros are lost. “It is the biggest tax Heist in the history of Europe,” said Spengel of “time”.
Searches of the “Correctiv”
Under the leadership of the research centre “Correctiv” were involved in the investigation 19 media from twelve countries. In Germany, the week newspaper “The time” and the public television interconnection ARD to the network. The Reuters news Agency, is involved. The Reports after investigations by prosecutors and financial authorities to extend to previously not-known banks. More than 180,000 pages of confidential files and documents, parliamentary investigation committees, internal reports from banks and law firms, customer lists, trade books, and E-Mails have been evaluated accordingly.
Cum-Ex-transactions: tax tricks for dividends for shares
With “Cum-Ex”transactions, the practice is known to buy a dividend record date in the so-called short sales of shares with (“cum”) and without (“ex”) the dividend claim, and to sell, and then only once paid capital gains tax of the tax offices several times to refund. In the case of the disputed transactions investor shares pushed so rapidly between several Parties. This left the papers with each other to circulate until the Treasury no longer clear whom they belonged to. The Tax loophole has now been closed. In the case of short sales investors trade with financial titles, which don’t have material. Dividends are dividends that listed companies pay out to a specific date to its shareholders.
For the Bank: “legal”
According to Reuters information, the public Prosecutor’s office in Cologne has opened in June a criminal investigation against the major Spanish Bank Santander. You should be occurred as a so-called short sellers in connection with “Cum-Ex”transactions. Also the Australian money house Macquarie is caught in the crosshairs of the investigators. The Bank itself keeps the shops of 2011 for legal. A spokesman for Santander declined to comment on whether the Bank is “Cum-Ex”transactions classifies as unlawful.
A report of the ARD-Tagesschau, according to almost all the major banks, but have been to the shops involved. “Because you can choose from a range of. I hardly know one that wasn’t”, – quotes the ARD an Insider. In September it became known that the General Prosecutor’s office in Frankfurt has expanded its investigation of the controversial “Cum-Ex”transactions. Prosecutors go after meanwhile, in seven proceedings complex open to the suspicion of tax evasion due to Tricks with equity securities, the authority said.
55 Billion Euros In Damages?
The largest proportion of the errechnteten total loss of a minimum of 55.2 billion Euro is attributable to Germany. The country has the largest tax in Europe. According to the published on Thursday “Cum-Ex-Files” … now in France, at least 17 billion euros, in Italy, 4.5 billion Euro, in Denmark, to EUR 1.7 billion in Belgium and EUR 201 million. Some States could require, therefore, amounts back. For other affected countries, there are no official Figures or reliable market data available.
Cum-Ex: sometimes the subject of the investigation Committee in the Bundestag
This has been made possible the research, according to the fact that the exchange of information on tax harmful activities within Europe have hardly taken place. So Germany will have its European neighbors only in 2015, an OECD-database on the Cum-Ex-transactions-informed, although the financial I know the Ministry at the latest since the 2002 decision.
Private Bank sentenced
In connection with the tax tricks, a Swiss private Bank, was sentenced in June due to losses of a private man. In the million dispute with the Swiss Bank Sarasin, the Ulm-based drugstore, had accused businessman Erwin Müller of the Swiss money home to have the wrong advice with a damage of more than 45 million Euro have suffered. Müller had claimed that he had been dropped from the Bank over risky and possibly criminal business practices of the displaced Fund, in the dark.
Also about this so-called Sheridan funds should be generated with Cum-Ex-transactions, profits, in which the German tax authorities by repeatedly requested refunds once retained capital income taxes has been fleeced.
ar/hb (rtr,NYSE: ARD)