There's enough cash sitting in offshore bank accounts to wipe out the federal deficit — if only it was subject to U.S. taxes.



That's because U.S. companies are saving some $620 billion by parking profits outside the country, according to the latest accounting from Citizens for Tax Justice and U.S. PIRG Education Fund.

At least 358 large U.S. companies collectively maintain 7,622 separate overseas subsidiaries holding $2.1 trillion in profits, the group said in a report Tuesday. (The estimated tax bill comes from corporate regulatory filings.)

Bermuda and the Cayman Islands are the most popular tax haven jurisdictions; about 60 percent of companies with tax subsidiaries have at least one in those two island nations, according to the report. The Netherlands leads the list in terms of the total number of subsidiaries.