The Mediterranean island of Cyprus has for years been considered an El Dorado for shell companies and foundations seeking to evade financial authorities or avoid sanctions. Now, an investigative network made up of more than 270 journalists from 55 countries – including Austria – has sifted through 3.6 million leaked documents and discovered, in addition to Russian and Ukrainian oligarchic money flows, two previously unknown companies owned by former Finance Minister Karl-Heinz. Graser.
Regarding the two previously unknown companies featured in the data collection called “Cyprus Confidential,” Grasser’s attorney Norbert Wess told the Investigative Network that one of the companies “was once a problem – briefly – but was “disused and never operational was active. “. The other is “completely unknown”.
“Foundation construction” in Cyprus
The corporate structures in Cyprus were part of a ‘foundation’ structure set up by Grasser’s tax advisor at the time and disclosed to the finance department. They were also part of the financial criminal proceedings against Grasser, which ended in an acquittal.
In the Buwog case, the Public Prosecution Service for Economy and Corruption suspects that bribes have flowed through such corporate structures. Grasser was sentenced at first instance to eight years in prison; the verdict is not final.
ORF and “Standaard” involved in research
The joint investigation was organized by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and the investigative start-up paper trail media run by Ibiza explorers Bastian Obermayer and Frederik Obermaier. The Washington Post was on board, as were Britain’s Guardian and France’s Le Monde. In German-speaking countries, “Der Standard” and ORF, the Swiss publishing house Tamedia, as well as “Der Spiegel” and ZDF worked together.
In the leaked data, the journalists found two-thirds of the approximately 100 Russian billionaires listed in Forbes magazine as customers of Cypriot financial services companies. Accordingly, wealthy Russians and also Ukrainians discreetly bought expensive apartments and houses in Austria through shell companies with Cypriot addresses.
For example, the sanctioned Russian oligarch Roman Abramowitsch, who chose a particularly complicated construction for a villa on Lake Fuschl – and did not comment on it when the research team asked. According to the leak, Abramowitsch not only spent a lot of money on real estate, but also several million dollars on private concerts by pop stars such as Robbie Williams and the Black Eyed Peas.
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
