Impact
ICIJ has redefined what investigative journalism looks like in the 21st century. We have repeatedly conducted journalistic collaborations so big, so visionary and so aspirational that they are unlike any others in history.
Our Offshore Leaks, Panama Papers, Paradise Papers and FinCEN Files investigations were the biggest cross-border journalism projects ever. They have shaken the establishment and led to public protests, to multiple arrests, sweeping legal reform, and official inquiries in more than 70 countries, and to the resignations of the leaders of Pakistan, Iceland and Malta after allegations of corruption.
We helped bring about the Corporate Transparency Act in the United States, hailed as the biggest anti-corruption measure since the Patriot Act of 2001. Our work has also been credited for helping bring more than 130 countries together to sign a worldwide minimum tax rate as a measure to stop giant corporations avoiding their responsibilities.
Jan 24, 2023
Police search PwC, Boston Consulting Group offices in Angolan corruption probe against Isabel dos Santos
Three years after Luanda Leaks exposed how Africa’s wealthiest woman created a shell empire to move tainted billions, the billionaire and her financial advisers continue to be dogged by investigations.
Nov 19, 2022
International arrest warrant issued for Angolan billionaire Isabel dos Santos
Sources say Interpol's "Red Notice" for dos Santos relates to allegedly corrupt dealings exposed in ICIJ’s Luanda Leaks investigation.
Dec 09, 2021
US sanctions Angolan billionaire Isabel dos Santos for corruption
ICIJ’s 2020 Luanda Leaks investigation revealed how decades of inside deals turned dos Santos, the daughter of Angola’s longtime former ruler, into Africa’s richest woman.
Sep 03, 2021
German state-owned bank fined for Angolan loan exposed in Luanda Leaks
KfW-Ipex-Bank, an import-export bank, had loaned more than $55 million through an Angolan bank to a brewery controlled by Isabel dos Santos.
Aug 02, 2021
Isabel dos Santos ordered to return to Angola $500 million in shares ‘tainted by illegality’
An international tribunal ruled that the billionaire and her late husband corruptly obtained a lucrative stake from the state oil company Sonangol.
Jul 23, 2021
Lessons from award-winning FinCEN Files and Luanda Leaks investigations
ICIJ's editors share reflections from behind the scenes of two award-winning investigations.
Jun 28, 2021
Dutch court sides with report calling dos Santos-linked energy deal an ‘act of corruption’
Dos Santos partnership with Angolan state oil company ‘null and void,’ court-appointed director says, following an inquiry prompted by ICIJ’s Luanda Leaks.
Apr 03, 2021
The fight against offshore crime will be a long campaign
On the fifth anniversary of the Panama Papers’ launch, experts say there’s been progress in the fight against dirty money — but much more is needed.
Mar 03, 2021
Isabel dos Santos’ Maltese consulting firm served with $230,000 tax bill
The Angolan billionaire’s company had “no intention” to carry out economic activity in Malta, the island nation's authorities said.
Feb 10, 2021
Angola asks Dutch court to seize Isabel dos Santos-linked stake in energy firm
The acquisition was bankrolled by state oil company Sonangol, whose lawyers now allege that the deal enriched Angola’s former ruling family at the expense of the country.
Feb 01, 2021
ICIJ nominated for Nobel Peace Prize for combating dark money flows
ICIJ and the Global Alliance for Tax Justice among nominees that also include Committee to Protect Journalists, Russian dissident Alexei Navalny and climate activist Greta Thunberg.
Dec 17, 2020
Unitel sues Isabel dos Santos company as her corporate empire continues to crumble
Luanda Leaks showed how the mobile company became a cash cow for the Angolan billionaire. It’s now seeking repayment of loans totalling $430 million.
Dec 07, 2020
After Luanda Leaks, a billionaire’s empire falls, but her enablers carry on
While Isabel dos Santos and her advisers face multiple investigations, accountability for the offshore industry remains elusive.
Oct 02, 2020
Portuguese regulator calls for criminal prosecution of auditors following Luanda Leaks
CMVM says Portuguese auditors broke anti-money laundering laws to help Angolan billionaire Isabel dos Santos grow her business empire.
Sep 19, 2020
Dutch court orders key business associate of Isabel dos Santos removed pending investigation
Lawyers for Angolan oil giant Sonangol expressed satisfaction with the ruling and credited revelations from ICIJ’s Luanda Leaks investigation.
Sep 16, 2020
Dutch launch criminal probe, freeze assets of Isabel dos Santos-linked firm
Prosecutors say they are looking into a controversial loan agreement detailed by ICIJ in Luanda Leaks.
Aug 27, 2020
Sonaecom ditches partnership with dos Santos in Portuguese telco NOS
Embattled businesswoman Isabel dos Santos has lost joint control of Portugal’s $1.82 billion leader in the so-called ‘quad play’ market of internet, TV, fixed and mobile telephony.
Aug 13, 2020
Luanda Leaks’ whistleblower is ‘new Snowden,’ claims lawyer after release
Rui Pinto, the computer whiz behind Luanda Leaks and Football Leaks, has been released from custody, pending trial.
Aug 11, 2020
Beleaguered billionaire dos Santos quits Unitel board
Isabel dos Santos has stepped down from the board of Angola's mobile phone operator Unitel, citing "a climate of permanent conflict" among the company’s directors.
Jul 27, 2020
Angola claims victory in axed port deal signed with dos Santos company
A Paris tribunal dismissed billionaire Isabel dos Santos’ case against Angola over a $1.5 billion port project, and ordered her firm pay $232,000 in costs.
Jul 20, 2020
European banking regulator to probe Luanda Leaks’ allegations
European lawmakers have demanded the regulator assess “whether there were breaches of either national or EU law, and to assess the actions taken by financial supervisors.”
Jul 13, 2020
Court ties dos Santos to ‘fraudulent’ diamond deal
An Angolan court says the deal between the country’s diamond company and Isabel dos Santos’ husband was harmful to average Angolans.
Jun 18, 2020
Isabel dos Santos blames asset freeze for Lisbon retreat and failure to pay staff
The Angolan billionaire has closed down her business offices in Portugal and fired dozens of staff after failing to pay wages, rent and bills for months.
Jun 05, 2020
German police seize bank records in Luanda Leaks brewery probe
Police searched the headquarters of a state-owned bank as part of a criminal investigation into a $55 million loan to a brewery owned by Isabel dos Santos.
Apr 07, 2020
Isabel dos Santos condemns ‘abusive’ seizure of $442m stake
Portugal has ramped up pressure on Isabel dos Santos in the wake of Luanda Leaks, and following a request from Angolan authorities in pursuit of more than $1 billion.