For example, a large chunk is deposited in Swiss banks, as the 'Swiss Banking Act' of 1934 ensures non-divulgence of information about individual depositors. In fact, the main destinations of black money are foreign territories. No reliable research has shown black money returning to the mainstream economy in a big way when opportunity for whitening is provided. Maximum black money is generated through transaction of spurious goods, drugs trade and human trafficking, according to the Washington-based think-tank Global Financial Integrity (GFI). It, however, incorporated mostly legal economic activities and tried to overlook illegal or criminal activities such as gambling and prostitution, as well as 'do-it-yourself' and household work. A 2018 study by IMF estimated the size of the underground economy in Bangladesh to be around 30 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP), the average for the period 1991-2015 being 33.59 per cent.

Higher levels of corruption are often associated with large underground or black economies. For all latest news, follow The Financial Express Google News channel.

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