Among a database of 100,000 offshore entities in tax havens that have been revealed, 498 are Indians with addresses in upscale neighborhoods across major cities in the country, according to recent data published by The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ).

The last tranche of disclosures came out in April 2013 and revealed names of popular Indian industrialists, actors, and politicians among them.

Go deeper with GlobalData

Data Insights

The gold standard of business intelligence.

Find out more

Access deeper industry intelligence

Experience unmatched clarity with a single platform that combines unique data, AI, and human expertise.

Find out more

Among the identities revealed, 194 are from Mumbai, the highest number among all the Indian cities. New Delhi is second with 113 owners of offshore entities. The remaining cities are Kolkata (39), Bangalore (36), Chennai (31), Hyderabad (13), Gurgaon (9) and Ahmedabad (7).

Responding to the information from ICIJ about hidden off-shore wealth, Financial Transparency Coalition, a network of international NGOs, said: "Beyond reasonable doubt that the world’s financial system legitimises industrial-scale tax avoidance, aids criminals and drug cartels and facilitates corruption up to the highest levels of our society".

 

ICIJ revelations

GlobalData Strategic Intelligence

US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?

Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.

By GlobalData

In May 2013, Switzerland’s two largest banks, UBS and Credit Suisse, were both named in a wide-spread investigation by ICIJ into offshore tax evasion.

On 6 June 2013, India sent 232 secret tax information requests to Switzerland.

On 17 June 2013, PBI reported that British tax havens agreed to Prime Minister David Cameron’s request of signing up to an extended set of transparency rules that are aimed at a tax evasion clampdown.

ICIJ said: "There are legitimate reasons to use offshore companies and trusts. ICIJ does not intend to suggest or imply that the people and companies included in the database have broken the law or otherwise acted improperly."

The database is not a data jump but a part of a cache of 2.5 million leaked offshore files ICIJ analysed by 112 journalists in 58 countries.

 

Tackle measures

On 29 May 2013, PBI reported that the Austrian Finance Ministry has set up a special committee, SoKo Offshore-Leaks, to tackle offshore tax evasion.

The aim of the offshore leaks database is to make company ownership information transparent. ICIJ has therefore published the postal addresses of the owners without disclosing other their personal data.