Corruption

There’s still much to be learned about the unauthorized release of the so-called Panama Papers, the documents exposing the financial interests of prominent world figures in offshore tax havens. What we know so far is that the release represents the single largest leak of data in history, totaling 2.6 terabytes ...

Unstable, corrupt, plagued by scandal—these describe Brazil’s current economic and political climate, a big transformation from its image of an advancing economy with secure investment opportunities.  How did Brazil, one of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, & South Africa) countries, go from boom to bust so rapidly? It begins ...

Optimism is in short supply here in Brazil and for good reason. Consumer confidence is at its lowest level in 10 years; both inflation and unemployment are increasing, and debt as a percentage of household income is approaching 50% -- perhaps not surprising when the annual interest rates on most ...

The current fiscal crisis in Brazil is the result of a long period of economic mismanagement by the Workers Party (PT).  Beginning in 2003 with the inauguration of President “Lula” da Silva, the government enjoyed a massive increase in revenues created by the demand from China for the country’s raw ...

The Cipher Brief discussed the political dynamics of Brazil with Phil Chicola, a former Chargé d'Affaires to Brazil from 2005 to 2006. Chicola discussed the country’s political and economic crises and offered his thoughts on what western companies can do to manage uncertainty in the near-term.  The Cipher Brief: President ...