A massive leak of documents exposes the offshore holdings of 12 current and former world leaders and reveals how, among others, associates of Russian President Vladimir Putin secretly shuffled as much as $2-billion through banks and shadow companies. The documents, held by the Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca, were passed to German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung, which then shared them with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, who shared them with 107 media organisations in 78 countries. The consortium and media organisations have been analysing the documents for more than a year.President Jacob Zuma's nephew, Khulubuse Zuma, is named in the leak as being authorised to represent Caprikat Limited, one of two offshore companies that controversially acquired oil fields in the Democratic Republic of Congo.Khulubuse Zuma did not respond to requests for comment from the consortium's journalists, while a spokesman for Fleurette, the owner of the two companies, said "the DRC benefits hugely" from "investment and long-term commitment" and noted "extensive benefits to local communities". The data also contains secret offshore companies linked to the families and associates of Egypt's former president Hosni Mubarak, Libya's former leader Muammar Gaddafi and Syrian president Bashar al-Assad.According to the consortium, the leak provides details of the hidden financial dealings of 128 more politicians and public officials.According to The Guardian, a network of secret offshore deals and vast loans worth $2-billion illustrated in the documents has laid a trail to Putin.Though the Russian president's name does not appear in any of the records, the data reveals a pattern - his friends have earned millions from deals that seemingly could not have been secured without his patronage. A Kremlin spokesman did not answer questions from the consortium, but instead went public on March 28 with charges the consortium and its media partners were preparing a misleading "information attack" on Putin. According to the BBC's analysis, the documents show how Mossack Fonseca helped clients launder money, dodge sanctions and evade tax.The company, in responses to several media organisations, says it has operated beyond reproach for 40 years and has never been charged with criminal wrong-doing. Mossack Fonseca says it has always complied with international protocols to ensure the companies it incorporates are not used for tax evasion, money-laundering, terrorist finance or other illicit purposes. The company says it conducts thorough due diligence and regrets any misuse of its services...