Inside the Panama Papers investigation of elite’s hidden wealth – new book Secrecy World reviewed
Author Jake Bernstein focuses on the stories of those who broke the law, evaded taxes, circumvented international sanctions, hid assets, cheated partners, or ‘normalised’ fortunes made through crime and corruption
Secrecy World: Inside the Panama Papers Investigation of Illicit Money Networks and the Global Elite
by Jake Bernstein
Henry Holt
3 stars
In the days after the events of September 11, 2001, it became clear to intelligence agencies that tracking the funds of terrorist groups and individuals was one of the most powerful tools at their disposal. Thus, “follow the money,” a Watergate-era dictum, acquired renewed relevance in the 21st century.
Monitoring money flows would not only allow those fighting terrorism to disrupt al-Qaeda’s financial support, but, even more important, it could provide actionable intelligence about the terrorists’ identities, their whereabouts and, in some cases, even their future targets.