• Press release

    • Patriotic Millionaires Project Video Onto IMF and World Bank Buildings Demanding to be Taxed More Ahead of G20 Finance Ministers Meeting 

    For Immediate Release

    Wednesday, April 17, 2024

    Patriotic Millionaires Project Video Onto IMF and World Bank Buildings Demanding to be Taxed More Ahead of G20 Finance Ministers Meeting 

    Their message is clear: the world is in crisis and now is the time to act. Tax us, the super-rich. We are proud to pay more!

    WASHINGTON, DC –  World economic leaders are in Washington, DC for the G20 Finance Ministers’ meeting on April 18, and members of the Patriotic Millionaires have a message for them: tax us, the super-rich, or face catastrophic consequences for our democracy and our planet.

    The video, created by the Patriotic Millionaires, was broadcast onto the buildings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in Washington, DC. The video can be seen in its entirety HERE. Still images of the projection are also available HERE.

    This is the second time G20 Finance Ministers have met since Brazil took on the Presidency of the G20 this year. Their first meeting, in February 2024, saw both the Brazilian and French Finance Ministers publicly support an initiative to set international standards for taxing the super-rich. This initiative, proposed by Gabriel Zucman from the EU Tax Observatory, now needs additional public support from other G20 Finance Ministers, which is the core message at the center of the projection.

    Morris Pearl, Chair of the Patriotic Millionaires and former managing director at BlackRock, said: “The G20 needs to grab the bull by the horns and tax us, the super rich. Billionaire wealth has grown to $14.2 trillion and yet 800 million people go to bed hungry every night. Action to build fairer economies is long overdue, and our political leaders cannot keep failing to take decisive action.”

    Patriotic Millionaires is an international group of 300 millionaires across the globe demanding to be taxed more. It includes high-profile names such as Abigail Disney, Morris Pearl (former managing director at BlackRock), musician Brian Eno, Gary Stevenson (former City trader and author), and John Driscoll (Executive Vice President of Walgreens Boots Alliance). They use their wealth to fight for a more equitable economy built on a foundation of a fair tax system, a livable wage, and equal access to democracy – and they are demanding to be taxed more.

    This group of wealthy individuals understands that extreme wealth is extreme power, and both are now threatening democracy, hurting the economy, and jeopardizing the planet. In fact, in a poll of millionaires from G20 countries released earlier this year, 75% of respondents supported higher taxes on the super-rich, and over half said that extreme wealth threatens democracy.

    Wendy Li, Patriotic Millionaires member, said: “In 2024, nearly half the population of the planet will go to the polls. Unless political leaders do something to better share the wealth, I’m worried that we’ll see a further lurch to the Far Right and an increased threat to our democracies. Our leaders need to show the people that they’re serious about tackling the extreme concentration of money and power. They need to tax us, the super rich.”

    To get more information about the Patriotic Millionaires, behind-the-scenes details on the video projection, or to set up an interview, please contact Emily McCloskey at emily@pm-mig.test.

    Key figures

     

    • There are now 2,781 global billionaires worth a staggering $14.2 trillion. That’s equal to the combined GDP of 150 countries.
    • Billionaires are about $2 trillion richer than last year and $1.1 trillion richer compared to the previous record set in 2021.
    • Since 2005, in nominal terms, billionaire wealth increased by 545%.
    • The EU Tax Observatory proposed a 2% tax on billionaires in its flagship report in 2023, which would raise $250 billion every year.
    • In a poll of G20 millionaires, 72 percent think that extreme wealth helps buy political influence, 54 percent think that extreme wealth is a threat to democracy, and 75% support the introduction of a 2% tax on billionaires.

    # # # # #