The Uneven Offshore World

Robertson and Tyrala provide a theoretical and empirical analysis of emerging markets and the offshore economic system. Few analysts are aware that corporate structures formed in Mauritius hold over $700 billion in assets in the global economy. In the last decade, taxation has become a central part of the international political agenda. Spurred on by vigorous contestation from the local level to the global level, serious efforts have been made to regulate the offshore economy. As a result, emerging markets are placed in a bind, with tensions between the continuing incentives to accommodate offshore capital and the global, regional and national pressures to curtail offshore activities. India has convincingly exhibited its commitment to the new tax agendahaving taken strong steps and implemented strict rules on how investors can utilize Mauritius for business transactions. Going forward, the African continent represents one of the most notable cases of whether India's actions will be replicated elsewhere. Mauritius-India and Mauritius-Africa are indicative test cases in considering the depth of taxation reform in the post-2008 global financial crisis world. An insightful study for scholars of international political economy--