Moneyland
Why Thieves and Crooks Now Rule the World and How to Take It Back
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3 Months Free + £10 Audible voucher
Moneyland
Buy Now for £14.50
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Narrated by:
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Oliver Bullough
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By:
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Oliver Bullough
An Economist Politics and Current Affairs book of the year.
Once upon a time, if an official stole money, there wasn't much he could do with it. He could buy himself a new car or build himself a nice house or give it to his friends and family, but that was about it. If he kept stealing, the money would just pile up in his house until he had no rooms left to put it in, or it was eaten by mice. And then some bankers in London had a bright idea. Join the investigative journalist Oliver Bullough on a journey into Moneyland - the secret country of the lawless, stateless superrich. Learn how the institutions of Europe and the United States have become money-laundering operations, undermining the foundations of Western stability.
Discover the true cost of being open for business no matter how corrupt and dangerous the customer. This is the story of wealth and power in the 21st century. It isn't too late to change it.
©2018 Oliver Bullough (P)2019 W. F. Howes LtdCritic reviews
"You cannot understand power, wealth and poverty without knowing about Moneyland." (Simon Kuper, New Statesman)
Bullough traces the roots of the current world order back to the Bretton Woods agreement at the end of World War II to impose fixed exchange rates between their currencies and the US dollar with the intention of encouraging international collaboration and trade. The inception of Eurobonds in the 1960s gave high net worth individuals greater ability to move their wealth around the world and independence of some small countries from their colonial masters gave rise to "tax havens" and jurisdictions that did not ask too many questions when accepting deposits.
For many very rich people, taking advantage of arrangements such as off shore trusts and complex corporate structures is simply efficient tax planning and enables them to steer clear of public scrutiny. Unfortunately for them, it would seem, Moneyland is also inhabited by criminals and corrupt government officials who want to stash away their ill gotten bounty without too many questions being asked. The author describes some of these shell company structures as like using a plastic bag to pick up a dog turd, it keeps your hands clean.
There is no shortages of territories that are willing to hold wealth and shelter taxes including the UK Channel Islands, Caribbean islands such as Nevis and Bermuda, micro-states such as Liechtenstein and Monaco in addition to the previously secretive Swiss banking system. Following the economic crisis of 2008, however, some high profile Swiss banks were embarrassingly for them, forced to disclose the names of account holders by US regulators. This was only a minor blip for Moneyland and Swiss banks have been replaced, ironically enough, with trusts in Nevada and South Dakota as the favoured place to stash their money.
The scale of funds held by the ultra rich are quite simply staggering and I would encourage anyone to read this book who has a passing interest in global economics.
The root of all evil transcends national borders
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Performance is poor though, the author reads far too fast and it is difficult to follow him, even slowing the speed of the player.
Eye opener
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Interesting read but didn’t find it all that clear at times
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A gripping story. Sadly not made up.
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Valuable information
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