Report denounces Moderna vaccines revenue tax havens - "The benefits of Moderna's vaccines will end up in some of the worst tax havens in the world," a report denounces.

Moderna's installation in the "tax havens" of Switzerland and the US state of Delaware offers it an "opportunity to evade taxes" for the sale of its coronavirus vaccines, says SOMO, a Dutch non-profit organization.

The Center for Multinational Enterprise Research (SOMO) warns in a report released Tuesday that "the benefits of [Modern] company vaccines will end up in some of the worst tax havens in the world."

He does so after analyzing the situation of Moderna in Switzerland and Delaware (USA), which he points out as tax havens where the company can benefit from paying less taxes on its income from the COVID-19 vaccine.

Report denounces Moderna vaccines revenue tax havens

SOMO is based, on the one hand, on a leaked contract, made between Moderna and the European Commission, where on the part of the American biotechnology company is its Swiss subsidiary, Moderna Switzerland GmbH, based in Basel, a Swiss city in which attractive taxation is offered to foreign companies, reduced to 13%.

According to the independent organization, "it seems to lack any genuine economic basis for this structuring, because Moderna Switzerland GmbH was created only in 2020 and does not seem to have been actively involved in the development of vaccines."

Following the logic of tax justice, the benefits of Moderna should accrue where its real economic activity of development, production and marketing of its vaccines takes place, he adds, before pointing to the consequences of this location.

Report denounces Moderna vaccines revenue tax havens

"By accounting for its profits in this low-tax jurisdiction, Moderna is likely to pay few taxes for the billions of euros it will earn from the coronavirus crisis," SOMO says in its report.

In this, he recalls that Switzerland has been classified as the third most secret jurisdiction in the world in terms of financial regulation, and "its laws require very little transparency from companies".

"Consequently, the accounts of Moderna Switzerland GmbH for 2021 will not be made public in the coming years. It will probably be impossible for the public to determine the exact profits that Moderna Switzerland GmbH will make, or to see if the company's effective tax rate is even close to the low legal rate of 13% of Basel's corporate tax," he laments.

Report denounces Moderna vaccines revenue tax havens

It also points to the U.S. state of Delaware, where revenues from intangible assets such as patents are not taxed, and where Moderna holds 780 patents.

"Delaware is a notorious global tax haven, known for the very low levels of taxation it offers businesses," he criticizes.

Finally, the non-profit organization, active since 1973, launches a more general attack on the entire "industry business model", focused on 3 aspects:

1. COVID-19 vaccines have been heavily subsidized with the help of public funds.
2. The price of these is relatively high compared to the costs and could increase, "which means huge profits for the shareholders of the company, paid in large part" with that public money.
3. "The big profits that the Modern vaccine producer will get will probably end up in the tax havens of Delaware and Switzerland," he concludes.

Report denounces Moderna vaccines revenue tax havens

"There is a tangible economic injustice when taxpayers finance the development of a product, only to [later] be sold to them with a considerable margin. The fact that the resulting profits end up in tax havens, where they are almost certainly taxed at a very low rate, if at all, aggravates this injustice," he concludes.

Report denounces Moderna vaccines revenue tax havens

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SEPI has only solved 5 bailouts, and used 10% of the original fund while dozens of companies are still pending resolution

The Sociedad Estatal de Participaciones Industriales (SEPI), attached to the Ministry of Finance, has a pending task. It has only approved 5 bailouts in a year and there are still dozens of unresolved applications from companies affected by the pandemic.

The Minister of Finance, María Jesús Montero, transferred in July last year the power to approve these rescues to SEPI, through the Fund to Support the Solvency of Strategic Companies affected by the Covid-19 crisis, which provided with 10,000 million euros.

12 months later, the body chaired by Belén Gualda has only spent 1,080.8 million euros,10% of the total. Applications are approved on a drop-count basis, on average one every 2 months.

The first company to receive a response was Air Europa last November, the airline was granted 475 million. The next 2 were Duro Felguera (120 million) and Plus Ultra (53), both of which were approved by the council of ministers on 9 March.

On March 16th, it was the turn of Avoris Corporación Empresarial, a company resulting from the integration of the Barceló and Globalia groups, which requested 320 million euros.

And this same Tuesday, July 13, SEPI approved the rescue of Tubos Reunidos. As reported by the Basque company to the CNMV will receive 112.8 million euros. If applicable, the disbursement will arrive six months after the request is made.

There are currently about 30 companies waiting for the SEPI to respond to their ransom request. The meagre award one year months after this fund was launched has been called into question in recent months. This is an instrument of urgent assistance and only 5 requests have been resolved.

Different sources highlight that the controversial rescue to Plus Ultra has slowed down all operations, which are now looked at more closely in order to avoid social conflicts, such as the one caused by the airline.

So far the highest request is that of Celsa, the largest Spanish steel company has requested up to 700 million euros, although financial market sources consider that the final rescue will be somewhat lower.

Abengoa also demands 249 million euros; Artificial 30 million, the Villar Mir Group has requested 240 million; Media Pro 230 million; and Naviera Armas about 100 million.

Although the tourism sector takes the lead, the airline Wamos has requested 75 million; Air Nostrum another 103 million; Hesperia 55, Room Mate 52, Hotusa 320, Soho 32, Serhs 35, Juliá 37; Pangea 25, or Albastar 25, among others.

In some of these companies, SEPI has exceeded the 6-month limit for responding, although this may also mean that it has been rejected. In any case, it has not been officially communicated.