And, yes, that includes an anti-competitive Democratic Party administration representing the US in this group of twenty.

G-20 finance officials called on the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development to report by July countries and jurisdictions that haven’t signed up to new international standards on tax transparency and information sharing.

“Defensive measures will be considered by G-20 members against non-cooperative jurisdictions,” the officials said in their statement after two days of meetings in Washington.

Wrong answer, guys.  Your threats just expose your own dishonesty.

If you really want to rein in the so-called tax havens, out-compete them in a free market: lower your own tax rates to competitive levels, and simplify your tax rules to eliminate your cynically Byzantine structures which serve only to benefit (or, just as bad, to appear to benefit) cronies and other government-favored groups.

The best defense is a good offense, but that offense must be directed at the right target.

“There is one thing which has not gone very global and that is taxation, which is still very much a local affair associated with national sovereignty,” IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde said.

Why must taxation be standardized globalized?  What part of national sovereignty is unclear to you, Madam?

And further cynicism:

Revenue lost to tax havens is a sore point for the G-20….

It isn’t lost to you, guys; it isn’t yours to begin with, so it cannot be “lost” to you.  Again, compete: lower tax rates, and reduce the incentives to hide in “tax havens.”

And just to be clear (although, surely I’m preaching to the choir here:

haven 2. A place of refuge or rest; a sanctuary.

Thus, tax haven is a place of refuge from abuse by tax.