George Soros Using Greece as a Trojan Horse Against Europe

Guru pressed Greece to support Ukraine

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Jun 01, 2017
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George Soros (Trades, Portfolio)’ hardline stand against corruption, tax evasion, money laundering and other unethical business activities is well known. He is known for donating millions of dollars worldwide to NGOs (nongovernmental organizations) that dance to his tune such as the Open Society Foundation and Global Witness. Many know him as a strong crusader against corrupt dictators and oligarchs, but what few realize is that the billionaire is as guilty of scandalous financial dealings as those he perpetually accuses.

With the help of an army of activists and NGOs that he funds, Soros has built the image of a financial seer but on closer inspection, his predictions are often wrong and sometimes financially rewarding. For instance, Soros earned $1 billion in 1992 by betting against the British pound and continuously predicting doom for the British economy. Well, the sky didn’t fall, and Soros made money.

In 2016, Soros was at it again when he declared in an interview for the New York Review of Books that the European Union was on the verge of collapse. He also predicted that President Donald Trump’s inauguration would result in a global stock market slump. As we know now, he was wrong on all counts.

His focus on Greece

In Greece, Soros saw a trump card to use against Europe. He routinely spoke of impending disaster in the first years of Greece's financial crisis. In a 2011 speech delivered in Vienna, Soros stated that Europe was facing an economic collapse that would start with an economic meltdown in Greece and inevitably lead to a breakup of the Eurozone. Such a cataclysm, as some of his acolytes in Greece later pointed out, would create zillions of dollars for high flyers such as Soros.

Fortunately, the sky over Greece still held, and things never went exactly as Soros had predicted, but the man still saw another form of upheaval in Greece that held the potential to not only add to his fortune but blow up European borders as well. The issue was a growing number of refugees migrating to Greece from war-torn nations such as Syria. In 2012 Soros was already calling the influx of refugees in Greece a serious crisis and setting the stage for a real crisis that hit the region three years later.

Most of the refugees were economic migrants who had relocated to Turkey from Syria before moving on to Greece because Turkish authorities didn’t allow them to work. The refugee problem in Greece would not have escalated to a crisis were it not for the involvement of Soros and his army of NGOs and activists.

A history of dubious financial practices

Behind his philanthropic façade, Soros has a history of unethical business practices including insider dealings and unethical financial practices. He has even been convicted of insider trading in France and tried to file numerous appeals unsuccessfully. In 1987, the billionaire bought shares in Societe Generale (XPAR:GLE, Financial) with insider information from investors, including Georges Pebereau, who were planning to take over the company. Although Pebereau never had a direct conversation with Soros, he spoke to some key members of Soros' team.

Between September and October 1988, Soros and Pebereau bought shares in SocGen; when the bank refused their takeover bid, Soros sold all his SocGen shares at a massive profit. The French market regulator, Commission des Bourse, looked into the matter in 1989 and concluded that no law had been broken, but when the law was amended in 2002, Soros was convicted and ordered to pay a fine of 2.2 million euros ($2.46 million). He has used all legal avenues to appeal, but the fine still stands.

Soros has also benefited immensely from a dubious deal in the U.K. where the Inland Revenue sold government property to an offshore company, Mapeley, which was actually registered in a tax haven. It later emerged that Soros was a majority shareholder in Mapeley.

Wider geopolitical implications of Soros’ activities in Europe

Soros’ tendency to promote chaos in Greece, then take advantage of the chaos, has unfavorable implications in Europe. His influence on European politics has raised concern in countries such as Macedonia. Soros’ role in the post-coup Ukrainian government was revealed in the 2015 Wikileaks.

Disclosure: I do not own any shares of any stocks mentioned in this article.