A new report from the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists has revealed Unima owner Aziz Ismail used offshore shell companies and questionable financial transactions to shield his fortune from being taxed.
Paris, France-based Unima is a producer of premium Malagasy giant tiger shrimp in Madagascar. Founded in the 1970s by Aziz Ismail, the company now produces approximately 5,000 tons of shrimp annually at its Madagascar farms, and its day-to-day operations are run by Ismael’s son, Amyne H. Ismail, who holds the position of general manager.
The ICIJ report, done in collaboration with non-profit environmental science and conservation news organization Mongabay, reviewed emails, contracts, and company records made public in the Panama Papers, a trove of more than 11 million documents taken from Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca and leaked by an anonymous source.
Offshore entities played a key role in an effort by the Ismails to avoid paying taxes on the family’s earnings from Unima, according to the investigation. Jason Braganza, an economist with nonprofit Tax Justice Network Africa, told investigators the Ismails were engaged in schemes that amounted to “tax avoidance 101.”
“The immediate red flags here are that the companies are reporting revenues generated in Madagascar as being tax liable in [the British Virgin Islands] and Monaco," Braganza said.
In 2001, Aziz Ismail took sole ownership of Ergia Ltd., a British Virgin Islands shell company. Documents covering the company’s financial dealings from 2001 through 2016 were obtained by journalists as part of the Panama Papers leak. They show that millions of dollars were transferred between Ergia and Unima Europe, a Monaco-based subsidiary of Unima, to pay for independent contracting, even though Ergia had no employees and no independent office, according to the investigation.
In 2012, financial crime regulators in the British Virgin Islands began investigating Ergia, asking Mossack Fonseca for details on the company’s ownership, financial activities, and bank accounts, the ICIJ reported. It is unclear if the investigation remains ongoing or was closed without the filing of any legal charges against Ergia or its ownership.
Tovony Randriamanalina, an international tax researcher at Université Paris-Dauphine in France, said Unima's use of multiple offshore companies meant it was likely avoiding paying its full share of taxes in one of the world’s poorest countries.
“In general, the use of two countries with zero tax (the BVI) or low tax (Monaco) is indicative” of an attempt by a group of related companies to pay as little tax as possible on its global activities, Randriamanalina said. “This is exactly how groups avoid taxes in developing countries like Madagascar.”
The Ismails and Unima did not respond to ICIJ’s requests for comment.
Unima has grown significantly in recent years and is seeking to expand its market presence in Europe and Asia, SeafoodSource reported in September 2018. The company stresses the environmental sustainability of its product in its sales pitch, including its role as an advisor to the World Wildlife Fund and Aquaculture Stewardship Council in drawing up sustainability guidelines for shrimp production.
