TAI Weekly

TAI Weekly | Is Financial Integrity Slipping Through Our Fingers?

By TAI (Role at TAI)
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TAI Weekly

Dear readers,

Our Weekly covers everything from AI governance to democracy and economic justice in Africa to equity based organizational governance to the latest on tackling (or failing to tackle) dirty money. Plus all the latest jobs and events.

But, we start this week with tax. For tax justice advocates these are interesting times - inequality is still widening in many contexts, but that is also creating pressure for reform. The Socialist party in France is demanding introduction of a 2% “Zucman tax” - i.e., a 2% tax on wealth above 100 million euros, projected to impact 0.01% of the French population - as a condition of passing a budget. The Financial Times had a full page feature this week on why wealth taxes may not be the answer - in itself a reflection of the growing debates in some OECD countries.

Happy reading!

TAI team

WHAT'S NEW?

Can foreign direct investment in extractives work out well for local populations? Eric Werker is the latest to analyze how community benefit agreements can help bridge the gap between corporate interests and community needs in mining governance.

Africa's AI governance landscape is taking shape through policy, practice and dialogue, as detailed in a new Carnegie Endowment report. Understanding these developments becomes crucial as artificial intelligence transforms governance across the continent.

Digital participation gets a comprehensive update with People Powered's revised Digital Participation Guide, created in collaboration with United Nations Development Programme, the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom Global Innovation Hub, and Civic Tech Field Guide. The resource addresses the fast-changing digital landscape for government, civil society, and philanthropic actors seeking to improve digital democracy.

It’s no surprise that think tanks are not immune from fast evolving challenges and opportunities. The On Think Tanks State of the Sector Report 2025 provides unprecedented insight into the evidence-based policy sector, drawing from responses by 333 think tanks across 102 countries.

Cross-border government collaboration finds new expression through the Government Council for Social Innovation. Jeroo Billimoria's analysis shows how countries pool experiences and adapt solutions across contexts, creating global spaces for governmental learning and innovation.

AI propaganda systems represent an escalating threat to information integrity. Lukasz Olejnik warns in Foreign Policy that sophisticated, autonomous systems can now orchestrate influence campaigns that once required armies of human operators, with the window for effective countermeasures rapidly closing.

Take part in the latest edition of the survey of aid cut impacts supported by Accountability Lab. Plus, ICYMI, check out Civic Strength Partners, a new collaboration among the Lab,  Development Gateway, and Digital Public matching services and support networks for organizations navigating mergers, partnerships, or legacy planning.

European protest rights face increasing restrictions, serving as early warning signs of democratic backsliding. Civitates' Eszter Szϋcs documents how authorities curtail peaceful demonstrations while civil society mounts powerful defenses of this fundamental right.

Women in Cameroon's Mbonjo village continue their decade-long fight for land and justice against multinational corporations. Supported by the Global Alliance for Green and Gender Action project, these grassroots advocates demonstrate how women's empowerment and land rights intersect in struggles for ancestral territory.

WINGS shares a new Philanthropy Transformation Initiative case study on Focus Central America, which illustrates how philanthropy can meet communities where they are by fostering dialogue, practicing flexibility, and supporting locally rooted leadership.

ESSENTIAL WATCHING

Political scientist Steven Levitsky brings an analysis of democracy's challenges to Roda Viva's Brazilian audience. The Harvard professor and director of the David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies, co-author of "How Democracies Die," examines international political directions and democratic challenges facing Brazil and the world.

FROM OUR MEMBERS

HUMANITY UNITED: Published its latest newsletter covering urgent global issues with exclusive content, including expert commentary on transforming anti-trafficking systems, and new perspectives on collaborative wellbeing. Subscribe to get every edition.

HUMANITY UNITED, FORD FOUNDATION & OPEN SOCIETY FOUNDATIONS: Partnered at a pivotal moment of U.S. foreign aid reductions to co-host the U.S.-Africa Futures Summit. The event brought together leading voices to discuss how communities can drive innovation, investment, and meaningful change. This collaborative effort highlights the organizations’ commitment to dialogue, action, and shaping solutions for global development and social impact.

OPEN SOCIETY FOUNDATIONS: Marked International Day of Democracy with a new report by Dr. Ndongo Samba Sylla, spotlighting the link between democracy and economic justice in Africa. The research urges decolonizing approaches to empower citizens, promote political equality, ensure fair outcomes, and strengthen socioeconomic rights for marginalized and vulnerable groups.

MACARTHUR FOUNDATION: President John Palfrey reflects on the fragility of freedoms following recent political violence, emphasizing the need to protect safety, free expression, and philanthropic freedom. He rejects efforts to mischaracterize philanthropy or restrict core rights, affirming MacArthur's commitment to strengthening communities and safeguarding historic freedoms.

TOOLS AND TRENDS FOR FUNDERS

Equity-based governance represents organizational evolution beyond traditional power structures. Adriana Craciun from Oak Foundation argues that moving from hierarchical models to equity-centered approaches offers a pathway from organizational dictatorship toward genuine democracy.

Community-led solutions require innovative financing approaches, as demonstrated by the Raven Indigenous Outcomes Funds in Canada. Their pioneering work establishes five key principles: community-defined outcomes, context-specific interventions, shared governance, shared investments, and independent verification.

Participatory grantmaking practitioners have new opportunities for deepening their practice through the next Participatory Grantmakers cohort. The initiative creates community spaces for long-term practitioners to share experiences and strengthen approaches to power-sharing in philanthropy. Fill out this Expression of Interest Form Deepening Practice second cohort.

The Civic Innovation Hub's NECE Magazine reframes hope as civic competence rather than mere sentiment. The new issue explores how educators, organizers, and institutions can treat hope as methodology, a way to counter cynicism, rebuild trust, and expand people's sense of agency in democratic participation.

ESSENTIAL WATCHING

The Financial Times investigates Bangladesh's missing billions in a comprehensive video report examining how an estimated $234 billion was allegedly plundered during Sheikh Hasina's 15-year reign as prime minister. The investigation features interviews with protesters, politicians, business people, and experts exploring how the money was extracted from the country and examining prospects for recovery.

FOCUS TOPIC OF THE WEEK:

Following the Money Gets Harder Every Day

The global financial system remains under siege from kleptocratic networks that demonstrate remarkable adaptability in the face of regulatory efforts. The Royal United Services Institute's recent roundtable (attended by TAI) on "The Role of Alternative Financial Systems in Enabling Kleptocracy and Threatening Financial Integrity" reveals how these networks exploit regulatory gaps and technological innovations to create parallel financial ecosystems beyond conventional oversight. 

The cryptocurrency sector exemplifies this evolution: when authorities shut down the Garantex exchange, Transparency International's exiled Russian chapter documented how a "new crypto laundromat" quickly emerged from its ashes, highlighting the depressing inevitability of criminal adaptation.

Perhaps most concerning is the apparent retreat from transparency reforms that took years to implement. Five years ago, the FinCEN Files exposed massive flows of dirty money through the U.S. financial system, leading to passage of the Corporate Transparency Act and creation of a beneficial ownership register. Now, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists reports that not only is FinCEN not actively enforcing the Act, but plans to delete the beneficial ownership data collected to date. This regression raises fundamental questions about institutional memory and accountability, abandoning hard-won transparency gains that proved invaluable for journalists, law enforcement, and civil society organizations working to expose corruption networks.

The human cost of these financial crimes extends far beyond regulatory compliance. John Prendergast from The Sentry demonstrates in Foreign Policy how global consumption patterns directly fuel conflicts in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with everyday products and sports sponsorships creating direct connections between consumer markets and violence. Corrupt officials and armed groups control extractive industries, using proceeds to finance military campaigns while minerals enter global supply chains through complex networks of shell companies and weak oversight jurisdictions.

Yet Prendergast's research also shows that coordinated public pressure can drive meaningful accountability. Consumer awareness campaigns and sustained media attention have forced companies to strengthen supply chain due diligence, suggesting that while kleptocratic networks are resilient, they are not impervious to civil society pressure. The path forward requires sustained commitment from governments to maintain transparency measures, robust compliance from financial institutions, and continued investigative work from journalists and advocates who recognize this as a fundamental struggle for democratic governance and global stability.

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