Brazilian government officials cited in the Paradise Papers

On Sunday, dozens of media outlets across the globe began to publish a series of articles based on a massive leak of documents from Appleby, a Bermuda-based law firm specialized in offshore accounts. The files – 13.4 million of them – reveal a vast financial network used by wealthy individuals to hide money from their governments. The list of this network’s beneficiaries include members of the U.S. government, the British royal family … and Michel Temer’s administration.

Finance Minister Henrique Meirelles and Blairo Maggi, Brazil’s Minister of Agriculture, are beneficiaries of companies based in tax havens. Meirelles created a foundation in Bermuda in 2002, while Maggi created a trust in the Cayman Islands seven years ago. They both claim to have done nothing illegal.

To be fair, Brazilian legislation says that there is nothing wrong with keeping money in tax havens, as long as offshore accounts are declared to revenue authorities. Plus, Brazilian legislation regarding offshore trusts and foundations is practically non-existent. As long as the money is declared, no crime is committed.

Henrique Meirelles and his offshore foundation

Meirelles’ foundation, The Sabedoria Trust, was created on December 23, 2002, with a $10,000 deposit. That was one week before...