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This Wednesday, September 4 opens in Bonn, Germany, the trial CumEx Files. This is the story of a massive tax evasion on fraudulent dividends. A financial scandal that cost 55 billion euros to several European countries. Germany is by far the most affected, but France, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium, Austria, Finland, Norway and Switzerland are also affected. The breakout of the century, revealed last year by an international consortium of journalists, started in Germany with the levers of traders, banks and unscrupulous lawyers who have operated as an organized band on the financial markets.
The case started in 2001 with a first manipulation called the "CumCum". Its principle is based on the different tax regimes granted to domestic investors and foreign investors. The latter are taxed more heavily on the dividends they earn than the nationals.
Then, just before making the gain, investors resell their securities to national banks then buy them immediately and escape the tax. Not completely illegal, manipulation is possible thanks to a loophole in the tax code.
In contrast, the second manipulation dubbed " CumEx " is scam. Shortly before the 2008 crisis, a German named Hanno Berger, a former tax official converted into a business lawyer, devised a system that made it possible to escape both the dividend tax and the tax. claim tax refunds.
The scam is to buy stocks very shortly before the dividends are paid and resell them right after.
The exchange of large financial volumes in a very short time masks the real identity of the beneficiaries. In addition, the size of the amounts and the speed of execution of financial transactions allow fraudsters to fool the taxman. They were able to obtain payment of a tax credit on dividends received. And even for some to get it many times.
► Also listen: "CumEx Files", a huge tax evasion case