The study by the Centre for Governance and Public Policy at Australia’s Griffith University tested firms in 182 countries by posing as fake customers, including would-be money launderers, corrupt officials and terrorist financiers, trying to set up anonymous companies.
And the results surprised those carrying out the research with so-called ‘tax havens’ – including Jersey – ranking top in the world and countries such as the UK, Australia, Canada and the US, near the bottom of the list.
As a result they concluded that it was ‘more than three times harder’ to obtain an untraceable shell company – basic legal companies that can act as a shield for the people behind them – in tax havens with places such as Jersey complying with international rules in 100 per cent of their approaches.
