Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela says the Panamanian government will create an independent commission to review the country's financial practices in the wake of the Panama Papers scandal.
Varela said in a brief televised statement Wednesday that the commission will contain "domestic and international experts" to evaluate the country's current practices and propose measures to strengthen transparency of financial and legal systems. Varela said Panama will share those recommendations with other countries so joint action can be taken to boost the overall transparency of the economic sector.
Meanwhile, France has added Panama to its "grey list" of world tax havens and is pushing for the international Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development to do the same.
OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurria says the Panama Papers leak has shown the country's economic sector tolerates a "culture of secrecy" and called it the last major jurisdiction allowing clients to hide money from legal authorities.