Kast Aims to Move On from Panama Case: «I Am Now Free from This Issue»

Original article: Kast quiere dar vuelta la página del caso Panamá: “ahora ya estoy liberado de ese tema”

During a phone call with Panama’s President, José Raúl Mulino, Chile’s elected leader José Antonio Kast addressed a long-standing issue surrounding his family’s investments in Panamanian companies. In a bid to close a controversial chapter, the Republican emphasized, «I am now free from this issue.»

The conversation, shared by Panamanian media, showcases Kast discussing the matter with Mulino while downplaying his personal and current ties to it.

«Mr. President, I’m thrilled to speak with you. I don’t know Panama. The fact is my family invested there at some point to transition to the United States, and I became well-known in Chile due to those investments, which I don’t have,» Kast is heard saying in the recording.

Explaining his prior reluctance to visit the country, he said, «That’s why I thought it would be complicated for me to go to Panama without being president or president-elect, but now I am free from this issue because it happened some time ago.»

In response, the Panamanian president replied, «You are free and welcome to come to Panama. We will coordinate this for March; I hope to be at your inauguration in Santiago and celebrate together.»

The Facts Behind the ‘Liberation’

The «liberation» Kast referred to originates from a 2019 investigative report by Diario La Tercera, which uncovered that he and his brother, Christian Kast, held shares in three companies established in Panama in 2003: Foods & Merchandising Investments Inc., Latin America Real Estate Investments Co. S.A., and Austral Inversiones S.A.

At that time, Panama was still listed as a tax haven by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). These companies, managing an estimated capital of about $21 million, were used to centralize family investments in the hotel and gastronomy sectors in Chile and were never declared by Kast in his tax returns as a deputy (from 2002 to 2018) or during his first presidential campaign in 2017.

Following the controversy from this revelation, the leader of the Republican Party—then still forming—asserted that he had never been a shareholder in the three entities created in the Caribbean country often referred to as a tax haven due to its territorial tax system, which provides benefits to both individuals and offshore companies, since their foreign-generated income is not taxable.

Kast denied any direct involvement, arguing that he didn’t declare «because they do not exist, and one cannot declare what does not exist,» dismissing claims of shareholding.

«My family has companies there, and it should be noted that until the year 2000, those companies had bearer shares. I have never been a holder of a share in a company in Panama. The difference is that many people take their resources to a tax haven and pay fewer taxes; however, what was used here was a way to enter the United States,» he explained.

Subsequently, La Tercera disclosed three official notarial deeds in which both José Antonio Kast and his brother Christian were the only holders of all bearer shares of the three companies.

On that occasion, the newspaper clarified that these documents were available in the Public Registry of Panama and were identical deeds corresponding to the protocolization of extraordinary shareholders’ meetings held by the three offshore firms on October 11, 2006.

The minutes recorded that Christian Kast, on behalf of the Republican, modified the statutes of the companies created in 2003 to increase their capital, which had reached $36.5 million by that date.

According to the media, the documents showed that the two brothers “are the holders of all shares issued and outstanding with voting rights” of the three companies, albeit without detailing the percentage owned by each.

This publication led José Antonio Kast to tell La Tercera, «a share was never issued in my name. There has never been a share certificate in my name,» and regarding the three minutes that contradict his thesis, he added that «those shares were transferred by my brother that same October of 2006 to another legal entity.»

According to the arguments presented by the Kast family, two days after the capital increase made at the extraordinary shareholders’ meetings on October 13, 2006, a nominative share certificate was issued so that 100% of the capital would be transferred to a foundation, where the president-elect is not listed.

Simultaneously, Christian Kast stated to the media that “José Antonio was never detailed on the operations I carried out in Panama, and he never participated in their ownership.”

Ultimately, in 2016, the Republican formalized his exit from the family holding, leaving it to his brother, during which he withdrew the sum of 4 billion Chilean pesos (about $4.5 million at that time’s exchange rate), capital that was then entered into his new family company, Inmobiliaria Padua SpA, which controls assets including the Colegio Campanario de Buin.

The Right Aligns

The call with Mulino was not only to address the issue of the Panamanian companies. Both right-wing representatives highlighted their common ties in the region and emphasized their joint intention to «relaunch bilateral relations» between Chile and Panama, promising a cooperative agenda once Kast officially takes office on March 11.

In a message posted on his X account, Mulino described the dialogue as a pleasant call and underscored the importance of maintaining the historical ties that unite the two nations while also opening new avenues for collaboration.

«We hope to meet soon and continue strengthening the bonds between our countries, based on all the good we already have in common and generating more opportunities for both nations,» wrote the president.