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Panama moves to boost transparency amid documents leak

Panama's government is creating an international committee of experts to recommend ways to boost transparency in the Central American country's offshore financial industry.

President Juan Carlos Varela is trying to shore up confidence in his nation's financial sector after the leaking of 11.5 million documents from a prominent Panama-based law firm which helped create shell companies for the world's rich and famous.

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Panama vows to 'evaluate' financial practices

President Juan Carlos Varela said a panel of experts would examine his country's financial practices Credit: Reuters

Panama's president has said his government will establish an independent panel of experts to review the country's financial practices, in the wake of the Panama Paper leaks.

Juan Carlos Varela's comments come amid the fallout from the leaked emails of Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca that have exposed tax avoidance measures by wealthy individuals and embarrassed a number of world leaders.

The Panamanian government, via our foreign ministry, will create an independent commission of domestic and international experts ... to evaluate our current practices and propose the adoption of measures that we will share with other countries of the world to strengthen the transparency of the financial and legal systems.

– Juan Carlos Varela, president of Panama

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