Exposing true ownership

Last week, the US Congress took the important step of passing legislation to require the true owners of companies to declare themselves.The Corporate Transparency Act requires U.S. companies to report their true owners to the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, known as FinCEN — largely ending anonymous shell companies in the country. The aim is to strike a blow at money-laundering particularly through the use of anonymous shell companies.

This is a measure which the UK should have adopted years ago. It would among other benefits have enabled many renters to obtain redress for poor maintenance of their properties and might even have reduced the flow of "hot" money into UK property developments. However, the chances of its happening under the current government, which clearly sees the furutre of the UK as the globe's foremost money launderer, are remote.