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Canada is being taken advantage by criminal organizations who launder dirty money from drug trafficking, smuggling, corruption and fraud, according to a report by the C.D. Howe Institute.

And the feds have failed to enact the proper legislation to stop it, the Canadian research institute says.

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Money laundering in Canada is estimate to be between $5 billion and $100 billion, Denis Meunier writes in the study. Taxes evaded on these illicit funds become a burden for those honest, hardworking individuals who pay their taxes as they have to cover the bulk of government costs, it states. Canada is a hotbed for this illegal activity because of a lack of transparency in beneficial corporate ownership, Meunier explains.

Simply put, a beneficial owner is someone who owns 25% or more of a company or corporation. Other countries, especially in Europe, require corporations to have publicly accessible registries for beneficial ownership. But here, these registries aren’t public and the onus is on the financial service provider, such as a bank, to verify the accuracy of the information of the beneficial owners and directors.