Notable Canadian companies, individuals in the Paradise Papers - Action News
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Notable Canadian companies, individuals in the Paradise Papers

CBC's investigative unit found the names of a total 3,284 Canadian individuals and corporate or financial entities in the leak of 13.4 million documents from the Appleby offshore law firm. Here is a selection of

Maple Leaf Foods

Packaged meat supplier Maple Leaf Foods Inc. owns an offshore company registered in the Bahamas. Maple Leaf Foods holds all $3.3 million worth of shares of Nine Five International Ltd., which lists as its president Michael McCain, who also serves as Maple Leaf's CEO.

Ina statement, Maple Leaf Foods said "this entity has been inactive for more than 30 years with no revenues, income or assets." Italso said"Mr. McCain has no personal involvement in this company, other than legal status for such an inactive entity which was simply a matter of organizational convenience."


Loblaw Financial Holdings Inc.

(Mark Blinch/Reuters) (Mark Blinch/Reuters)

Supermarket giant Loblaw registered offshore holding companies in Barbados and Bermuda in 2005. They were used to invest and distribute dividends on tens of millions of dollars collected from customers of the President's Choice Financial MasterCard premiums paid for insurance on card balances in casesof "job loss, disability and death."

Loblaw vice-president of corporate affairs Kevin Groh said in a statement: "the CRA is aware of all of our international income. Our activities in other jurisdictions are legal and transparent, and all applicable taxes have been paid."


Club de Hockey Canadiens Inc.

(Jean-Yves Ahern/USA Today Sports)

The Montreal Canadiens, an Appleby client since 1980, set up two trusts in Bermuda, including an employee benefit fund that was shut down in 2010.

In an emailed statement to CBC News, the organization said its offshore business was "in full compliance with the existing Canadian tax legislation and was reviewed by the Canada Revenue Agency.''


William Markland Molson

Before his death in 2006, the Molsonbrewing patriarch created an offshore trust incorporated in Bermuda with the help of Appleby.


Carl Dare

The patriarch of Canada's Dare Foods cookie and candy empirehired Appleby to set up a trust. According to leaked documents, the $5-million fund was incorporated in the Cayman Islands to "hold assets for members of the settlor's family."

Dare died in 2014.


Glencore

(Associated Press)

The mining giant, which employs more than 7,000 Canadians,is among Appleby's top clients worldwide. The company has subsidiaries based in Australia, Switzerland, Bermuda and Canada, where it owns Katanga Mining Limited, which operates in Congo but is listed on the TSX.

In a statement, Glencore said its "tax obligations [are] in line with the laws and regulations in the countries and territories" in which it operates.The company also said it provides"public disclosure of [its] economic contributions including tax."


Petro-CanadaandSuncor Energy

(Todd Korol/Reuters) (Todd Korol/Reuters)

Petro-Canada and Suncor Energy, which merged in 2009, owned several offshore entities incorporated in Bermuda between 1990 and 2002. According to leaked Appleby documents, the offshore companies were used to finance oil andgas activities in North Africa, Syria and Libya.

In a statement, Suncor said it's"fully compliant with all tax regulations and [...] disclosure obligations [...] in reporting jurisdictions" and that its filings are reviewed annually by the Canada Revenue Agency.


Michael DeGroote

(McMaster University)

Billionaire philanthropist Michael George DeGroote, who has two buildings named after him at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ont., has been a client of Appleby's for nearly 20 years. DeGroote, who is an officer of the Order of Canada,moved to Bermuda in the 1990s, where hehired Appleby to administer three trusts and five companies.

In a statement, DeGroote's lawyer said his client has not resided in Canada since 1990 and that he "complied with all Canadian income tax laws when he ceased to be resident in Canada." He also said "any trust [DeGroote] established in Bermuda complies with all applicable tax and other regulatory requirements."


Hydro-Qubec and ex-CEO Thierry Vandal

(Ryan Remiorz/Canadian Press) (Ryan Remiorz/The Canadian Press)

Hydro-Qubec and its former CEO Thierry Vandal are named in the Paradise Papers. Vandal is registered as an officer of Hydro-Qubec International (HQI) China, incorporated in Bermuda and dissolved in 2007.

In a statement, Hydro-Qubec said HQI China was created in 1999 to "invest in power generation projects in China" and was "made public and presented in [the company's] financial results."The energy provider also said capital tax was paid in Quebec on the $6.8-milliongain made upon disposal of HQI China and that ''it fully complies with tax legislation and pays all taxes to which it is subjected.'' Vandal was also contacted and referred all questions to Hydro-Qubec.


Emanuele 'Lino'Saputo

(Ryan Remiorz/Canadian Press)

In 2008, Appleby incorporated a Bermuda entity for an aviation company owned in part by Quebec billionaireLino Saputo, the founder of a Canadiancheese empire. According to a statement from the Saputo family's investment branch, ATS Bermuda 1 Limited was created to maintain the registration of a plane in Bermuda it intended to sell, as is required according toBermuda's regulations.

A spokesperson wrote that ATSBermuda 1 Limited "was justified for business reasons and not for fiscal considerations," and explained thateven if Saputoowned half of the aviation company, he was not involved in the company or the entity's operations.

Saputo sold his shares in the aviation company in 2010.


* Offshore investments are not illegal in Canada provided the revenues are declared to the Canada Revenue Agency.

Methodology:

All companies and individuals mentioned inthis listand its relatedarticle "More than 3,000 Canadians named in Paradise Papers"were selected as follows: the person or company is of public interest, hasa clear tie to at least one offshore corporation created or managed by Appleby, and that link is established in at least one document found in the leak. All parties were contacted prior to publication, and their response or clarifications were added to this article.