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A former investment manager for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints told 60 Minutes on Sunday that he joined Ensign Peak Advisors, the cult’s investment arm, to help the global denomination’s philanthropic efforts around the world. He said he thought he could contribute to the promotion of the activity.
Portfolio supervisor turned IRS whistleblower David A. Nielsen says the Utah-based faith will use its tax-exempt status to raise $100 billion built from the tithing of its followers. He said he had illegally amassed an investment of more than a dollar and that the money was “never used” to: Good works of them.
“It was actually a top-secret hedge fund,” Nielsen told news magazine program correspondent Sharin Alfonsi. “Once the money came in, it never went out.”
“I thought I could change the world,” said the Salt Lake City resident, who added that he quit a high-paying job on Wall Street to join Ensign Peak in 2009, but left after a decade of disillusionment. . “We just expanded our bank account.”
Sunday’s news corner, titled “The Church Company,” marked the first public comment since Mr. Nielsen filed a lawsuit with tax authorities in late 2019, alleging that the church’s investment firm had false records “under the guise of charity.” accused of evading billions of dollars in taxes by misleading them. 17 million followers.
News magazine programs estimated that the church brings in an estimated $7 billion in tithing annually, with $1 billion remaining at the end of the year, with the surplus probably pouring into the accounts of Ensign Peak Advisors. said that
In an additional video clip released after the broadcast, Nielsen said that Ensign Peak was run by “some of the nicest people I’ve ever known”, but the company’s tendency to secrecy made it difficult. He said it had turned the company’s culture into an “unhealthy one.”
“You can’t hide $100 billion with a single lie,” Nielsen said. “It’s tough to keep it going. And building a company based on so much secrecy and the need for cover-up creates an atmosphere of upper-level leadership that you can do anything as long as you keep it under wraps.” born.”
According to Nielsen, fund managers don’t spend money on church activities, but nearly $2 billion from Ensign Peak was used for commercial purposes, the cult’s construction near its headquarters campus in the heart of downtown Salt Lake City, Nielsen said. a luxury mall, City Creek Center, and Beneficial Life, a church-owned insurance company.
“I’m no philanthropy expert,” Nielsen told Alfonsi. “But I am well aware that charities cannot bail out commercial companies and remain charitable,” he said.
Church Leaders Defend Financial Practices
W. Christopher Waddell, First Counselor to the Diocese of the Diocese, who oversees the church’s extensive financial, real estate, investment and philanthropic activities, countered that Nielsen did not know the full extent of Ensign Peake’s activities. bottom.
Mr. Waddell said Mr. Nielsen’s accusations were “totally false,” and later stated that Ensign Peak held assets in aid of the church and “provided us with the resources necessary to operate as a church.” there are,” he said.
“This is not an investment bank,” says Waddell. “It’s a church treasury.”
Sunday’s 13-minute article did not add substantial new detail to what Nielsen shared with tax officials, the Justice Department, the US Senate Finance Committee and the Securities and Exchange Commission. He said he decided to come forward on national television “with all professional courtesy” to the IRS and SEC.
“It’s time,” he said. “This is too important to pass up.”
The “60 Minutes” segment does not mention Nielsen’s call for Congress to investigate the church’s financial practices.
In additional footage, Nielsen was asked what went wrong with filing a whistleblower complaint, which could result in millions of dollars in rewards from the government, 60 Minutes said. bottom.
“Integrity is at stake,” he replied. “My. Ensign Peake. Of the church. We have to go through the process to make the world a better place.”
“This is too big,” Nielsen said at another point. “I couldn’t fix it from the inside.”
“People have been saying worse things about me over the last few years,” Nielsen quipped when asked about the accusations that he was trying to cash in whistleblowing rewards.
Former IRS official Phil Hackney, also interviewed for this corner, later said it was “unlikely” that Nielsen’s allegations would be fully investigated.
“The political risks are enormous and involve real dangers,” Mr Hackney said. “At the same time, the rule of law is at great risk if the IRS does not step in and enforce these rules.”
Church refuses to disclose total assets
Nielsen’s interview added a dimension of personal betrayal to the nearly four-year story of his claim.
Boss asks for an explanation of how Ensign Peake’s vast reserves (at the time he was over $100 billion in donations from Harvard University and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and 60 Minutes magazine) will one day be used When confronted with them, he said: “The answer has always been the Second Coming,” Nielsen said.
“It’s kind of a joke, but I think deep down a lot of the employees really believed that,” he said.
Waddell flatly rejected the allegations, as other Latter-day Saints have done in the past.
“We believe that Jesus Christ will come back one day. But that’s not why we have those resources,” Waddell said. The funds are for the church’s continued operations and “for the future,” he added.
He did not mention claims that the “unexpected” fund had reached as much as $150 billion. At one point, when asked if the figure was “in the approximate range,” Waddell smiled and only replied that the church had “considerable resources.”
He denied allegations that the fund was excessive beyond the church’s own prudent principles.
“I don’t know if it will be overkill, because at some point it will all be used,” Waddell said in an additional clip. “We will double down on our humanitarian efforts again and again. We will continue to build temples that require these resources.”
Latter-day Saint leaders also defended the church’s position of withholding financial details.
In response to a question about the lack of transparency that can create mistrust, Waddell said: We feel it’s a confidential matter,” but added that the difference between the two is a matter of “point of view.”
“It’s confidential so that we can keep the focus on what our purpose is, not that the church has X amount of money,” Waddell said. If the church’s assets were made public, “people will tell us what they want us to do with the money,” he said.
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