Publicani: Private Taxman of the Roman Empire

 Outsourcing tax collection to private individuals is not a new concept. It has its roots in ancient Rome and it had been tainted with corruption from its first days.The name for the private taxman was Publicani.
       Roman Empire, due to its immense size and difficulty in coordinating tax collection efforts, resorted to privatization of tax collections. Most of the Tax collection privilages were granted to warlord, senators or local nobility which was also called publicani.
           Government will hold the senator liable for a set amount in taxes for the privilage.This privilage with no oversight caused abuses from its first inception. Emperor simply did not care how the tax collectors came up with the money. As in Ancient Rome, guilt gets spread around in Wall Street too. Many financial institutions like Bank of America, Wells Fargo and many big hedge funds are playing the role of publicani.            
           However, today private tax man can use the shield of anomosity in the purchase process. Many companies that are purchasing tax liens, are front companies with unique names which connects to drop boxes or empty offices in suburbia. Some of them are even registered in overseas. As in Roman Empire, there is very little or almost no regulatory oversight in this rapidly expanding field.