As part of the Paradise Papers leak this past Sunday (November 5), U2 frontman Bono was revealed to be an investor in a Lithuanian shopping centre that may have looked to bend the country's tax rules. Now, the singer has spoken about his inclusion in the leak.
Bono said in a statement that he would be "extremely distressed if even as a passive minority investor ... anything less than exemplary was done with my name anywhere near it."
He added, "I take this stuff very seriously. I have campaigned for the beneficial ownership of offshore companies to be made transparent. Indeed this is why my name is on documents rather than in a trust."
As the BBC reports, Bono came to own his share in the Aušra shopping centre through investing in Malta-based company Nude Estates, which bought the mall in 2007. The shopping centre is accused of avoiding paying €47,000 in local taxes.
In his statement, Bono added that he had "been assured by those running the company that it is fully tax compliant, but if that is not the case I want to know as much as the tax office does, and so I also welcome the audit they have said they will undertake."
He continued, "The fact is I welcome this reporting. It shouldn't take leaks to understand what's going on where. There should be public registries so that the press and public can see what governments, like Guernsey, already know."
A spokeswoman for Bono explained Monday (November 6) that the singer was a "passive minority investor in Nude Estates Malta Ltd., a company that was legally registered in Malta until it was voluntarily wound up in 2015."
Read Bono's full statement below:
I would be extremely distressed if, even as a passive minority investor in UAB2 in Lithuania, anything less than exemplary was done with my name anywhere near it.
I've been assured by those running the company that it is fully tax compliant, but if that is not the case I want to know as much as the tax office does, and so I also welcome the audit they have said they will undertake.
I take this stuff very seriously. I have campaigned for the beneficial ownership of offshore companies to be made transparent.
Indeed, this is why my name is on documents rather than in a trust. The fact is I welcome this reporting. It shouldn't take leaks to understand what's going on where.
There should be public registries so that the press and public can see what governments, like Guernsey, already know.
U2's upcoming album Songs of Experience is due for release on December 1. You can order it in standard CD, vinyl, deluxe CD and super deluxe vinyl editions via MusicVaultz.
Bono said in a statement that he would be "extremely distressed if even as a passive minority investor ... anything less than exemplary was done with my name anywhere near it."
He added, "I take this stuff very seriously. I have campaigned for the beneficial ownership of offshore companies to be made transparent. Indeed this is why my name is on documents rather than in a trust."
As the BBC reports, Bono came to own his share in the Aušra shopping centre through investing in Malta-based company Nude Estates, which bought the mall in 2007. The shopping centre is accused of avoiding paying €47,000 in local taxes.
In his statement, Bono added that he had "been assured by those running the company that it is fully tax compliant, but if that is not the case I want to know as much as the tax office does, and so I also welcome the audit they have said they will undertake."
He continued, "The fact is I welcome this reporting. It shouldn't take leaks to understand what's going on where. There should be public registries so that the press and public can see what governments, like Guernsey, already know."
A spokeswoman for Bono explained Monday (November 6) that the singer was a "passive minority investor in Nude Estates Malta Ltd., a company that was legally registered in Malta until it was voluntarily wound up in 2015."
Read Bono's full statement below:
I would be extremely distressed if, even as a passive minority investor in UAB2 in Lithuania, anything less than exemplary was done with my name anywhere near it.
I've been assured by those running the company that it is fully tax compliant, but if that is not the case I want to know as much as the tax office does, and so I also welcome the audit they have said they will undertake.
I take this stuff very seriously. I have campaigned for the beneficial ownership of offshore companies to be made transparent.
Indeed, this is why my name is on documents rather than in a trust. The fact is I welcome this reporting. It shouldn't take leaks to understand what's going on where.
There should be public registries so that the press and public can see what governments, like Guernsey, already know.
U2's upcoming album Songs of Experience is due for release on December 1. You can order it in standard CD, vinyl, deluxe CD and super deluxe vinyl editions via MusicVaultz.
