| A non-insubstantial amount of Singapore's GDP comes from tax evasion and money laundering from corrupt businesses and individuals.[1] Most corrupt Asian wealth is stored or laundered through Singapore. From Ferdinand Marcos[a], Robert Mugabe[b], Suharto's closest advisors[c], the Chinese princelings[d], Burma's military junta[e], Russia's oligarchs[f] etc etc. This is in addition to their 'legal' tax avoidance-derived GDP. In 2012, Apple did $14 Billion in revenue in Singapore, which was more than they had in the rest of Asia combined, yet they didn't have a single store or manufacturing center in the city-state.[2] Microsoft actually beat Apple to setup a Singapore-based affiliate for the same purpose. I'm curious to see how they fare in a decade after these sources of 'income' are greatly restricted in the global crackdown.[3] One of these days, I'm going to devote a few hours to calculating how much of Singapore's GDP / Tax base only exists due to their status as a tax haven. [1] - http://www.icij.org/search/node/singapore [a] - http://globalnation.inquirer.net/95743/pnb-gets-marcos-loot-... [b] - http://www.icij.org/offshore/mugabe-crony-among-thai-names-s... [c] - http://www.icij.org/offshore/billionaires-among-thousands-in... [d] - http://international.sueddeutsche.de/post/74093618828/chinas... [e] - http://www.smh.com.au/news/business/singapore-a-friend-indee... [f] - http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/036282b4-be65-11de-b4ab-00144... [2] - http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/11/24/us-singapore-tax-i... [3] - http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/the-singapore-bank... |