Untaxed wealth hidden offshore by richest 0.1% surpasses entire wealth of the poorest half of humanity

The amount of untaxed wealth hidden offshore by the richest 0.1 percent exceeds the entire wealth of the poorest half of humanity (4.1 billion people), reveals new Oxfam analysis published today ahead of the 10th anniversary of the Panama Papers. The findings show that, a decade later, the super-rich continue to exploit offshore systems to evade taxes and conceal assets, highlighting the urgent need for coordinated international action to tax extreme wealth and end the use of tax havens.

Oxfam estimates that $3.55 trillion in untaxed wealth was stashed offshore in tax havens and unreported accounts in 2024. This sum exceeds the GDP of France and is more than twice the combined GDP of the world’s 44 least developed countries.

The richest 0.1 percent holds approximately 80 percent of all untaxed offshore wealth, or around $2.84 trillion. Within this tiny group, the ultra-wealthiest 0.01 percent holds roughly half ($1.77 trillion).

“The Panama Papers pulled back the veil on a shadow world where the richest quietly move immense fortunes beyond the reach of taxes and scrutiny. Ten years on, the super-rich are still sequestering oceans of wealth in offshore vaults,” said Christian Hallum, Oxfam International’s Tax Lead.

“This isn’t just about clever accounting —it’s about power and impunity. When millionaires and billionaires stash trillions of dollars in offshore tax havens, they place themselves above the obligations that bind the rest of society. The consequences are as predictable as they are devastating: we see our public hospitals and schools starved of funds, our social fabric shredded by rising inequality, and ordinary people forced to shoulder the costs of a system rigged to enrich a tiny few.”

While progress has been made in reducing untaxed offshore wealth, it remains stubbornly high at approximately 3.2 percent of global GDP. Progress also remains highly uneven: most countries in the Global South are excluded from the Automatic Exchange of Information system (AEOI) despite their urgent need for tax revenue. The AEOI is credited with reducing the share of untaxed offshore wealth in recent years.

Oxfam calls on governments to:
 

• Strengthen inclusive global cooperation to tax the super-rich and end tax havens under the UN Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation, while supporting complementary regional and international initiatives.
• Strengthen tax authorities and financial transparency, giving governments the tools to identify and track the wealth of the richest individuals, including through a global asset register.
• Ensure the richest 1 percent pay significantly higher effective tax rates on income from both labor and capital, with even higher rates for multimillionaires and billionaires.
• Introduce taxes on extreme wealth, particularly targeting the richest 1 percent, at levels sufficient to reduce inequality.