​On Sunday, over 100 news organizations from around the world dropped simultaneous investigations into a massive leak of data belonging to Mossack Fonseca, a Panamanian firm specializing in establishing shell corporations, which revealed how the world's ultra-wealthy — including major world leaders and their associates — hide their money.

With so many investigations and so many threads to unravel, there's a lot to take in — here's what we think you should know.

The Leak Is Unprecedented In Size

Altogether, the leak included roughly 11.5 million files — encompassing 40 years of Mossack Fonseca's records.

German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung, the first outlet to receive the leaked files, put the size of the breach in perspective:



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[Süddeutsche Zeitung]



And Comprehensive In Its Scope

[The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists'] analysis of the leaked records revealed information on more than 214,000 offshore companies connected to people in more than 200 countries and territories. The data includes emails, financial spreadsheets, passports and corporate records revealing the secret owners of bank accounts and companies in 21 offshore jurisdictions, including Nevada, Hong Kong and the British Virgin Islands.

[ICIJ]

Are Offshore Shell Corporations Legal?

Absolutely! And not only are shell companies legal, it is incredibly easy to start your own (if you are so inclined). Fusion breaks it down:



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[Image via Fusion]





But while offshore shell corporations are totally legal, they are ideal for an array of illegal financial activities. For instance, allowing dirty regimes to evade economic sanctions:

[T]he more onerous the sanctions on a regime the more money is to be made by breaking or busting them. Providing secret bank accounts for torturers and mass murderers, supplying weapons to one or even both sides in a civil war or funding the nuclear ambitions of isolated regimes. The profits are huge and, of course, lots of secretive bank accounts and shell companies in parts of the world where officials turn a blind eye, is key to making sanction busting profitable and safe.

[BBC]





McClatchy breaks down why offshore shell corporations are designed to hide money — and the people the money belongs to.

[McClatchy]





So What Do The Leaks Reveal, Exactly?

Basically, while we've long had a pretty darn good idea that the ultra-wealthy hide their money using shell corporations, the leaked files nail down the specifics — names, bank accounts, the works — and the scope of the issue.

This video from the Guardian breaks down very clearly how Mossack Fonseca enabled Vladimir Putin, probably the most influential person implicated in the leak, to conceal a billion dollars (and then spend it, discreetly).

[The Guardian]

So Who Else Is Named?

It's not just Putin. Among those implicated are the sitting presidents of Argentina and Ukraine, the prime minister of Iceland, the king of Saudi Arabia and so many more. Notably absent: anyone from the United States (Fusion asked some experts what's up with that). The ICIJ lays out those implicated here.

[ICIJ]





The Political Fallout Is Beginning

The prime minister of Iceland — who walked out of an interview when he was asked about the allegations — has resigned following large protests. The Atlantic has a good roundup of other leaders under scrutiny, including those of Pakistan, Ukraine and Azerbaijan.





Still confused? Check out our Dialog with Fusion investigative reporters Alice Brennan, Adam Weinstein and Catherine Dunn and ask them all about it! We rounded up the most interesting answers here.

What To Read

The ICIJ's comprehensive coverage of the leak

Süddeutsche Zeitung and WIRED on how the files were obtained and how the investigation got going

The Guardian on the $2 billion trail leading to Vladimir Putin

Fusion on (believe it or not) FIFA's ties to Mossack Fonseca

The BBC's breakdown of the financial mechanisms at work

McClatchy on how the superrich get divorced