Mossack Fonseca
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| Headquarters | Panama City, Panama |
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| No. of employees | 500+ |
| Key people | Rubén Hernández, CEO |
| Date founded | 1977 |
| Founder | Jürgen Mossack and Ramón Fonseca |
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Mossack Fonseca & Co. is a Panamanian law firm and corporate service provider. Founded in 1977, it is the world’s fourth biggest provider of offshore services. Until the publication of the Panama Papers, it was mostly obscure. In fact, it sits at the heart of the global offshore industry, and acts for about 300,000 companies. More than half are registered in British tax havens – as well as in the UK. The firm received worldwide media attention in April 2016, when information about its clients' financial dealings was published by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists in the Panama Papers articles, following the release of an enormous cache of its documents from between 1970 and 2015 leaked to the news media.
The firm was founded by German lawyer Jürgen Mossack in 1977 and joined by Panamanian novelist/lawyer Ramón Fonseca in 1986. It later added a third director, Swiss lawyer Christoph Zollinger.
It specializes in commercial law, trust services, investor advisory, and international business structures. It also offers intellectual property protection and maritime law services. An internal memorandum revealed in the 2016 Panama papers leak noted that 95% of the company's work consists of "selling vehicles to avoid taxes".
In 2013, the firm was described as one of seven that collectively represented more than half of the offshore companies incorporated in Panama. The firm also houses several Panama-incorporated companies within its offices. It is one of the largest firms in the corporate services industry. However, the founder claims that its volume represents only around 5% of the global financial services legal industry. According to The Economist, the firm has 5 to 10% of the global shell company market, and it has been described as "tight-lipped".
The firm has nine offices in China, several in Latin America, others in the United States and Europe, with two in Switzerland. Lawyers from the firm have been sent to foreign countries to promote business in Panama and Panamanian financial products.
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