A Swiss parliamentary committee Nov. 10 gave its go-ahead to proposed amendments to a new U.S.-Swiss double taxation treaty that would make it easier for U.S. authorities to seek information on secret bank accounts held by U.S. taxpayers with Swiss banks. The amendment allows for the handover of files on suspected tax offenders to the…
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Former UBS Client Sentenced for Stashing $7.1 Million in Swiss Accounts
Bloomberg reports that Richard Werdiger, 64, is one of 36 Americans charged since 2007 in a U.S. crackdown on offshore tax evasion, and his was the longest prison term by a day. Werdiger, who pleaded guilty in March in federal court in New York, paid a civil penalty of $3.84 million and was fined $50,000 yesterday…
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Public Anger and Shareholder Unease Threaten Tax Havens' Tranquility
The Economist recently reported that - Under intense international pressure to lift banking secrecy, the first and biggest of the world’s “tax havens”—places that charge low or no taxes to foreigners—is ceding some ground. In a deal signed on October 6th, Switzerland agreed to tax money held in its banks by British residents (it had already…
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Swiss Order Credit Suisse to Disclose U.S. Account Information
The Swiss government has ordered Credit Suisse, the country’s second-largest bank, to hand over information on undeclared bank accounts held by U.S. taxpayers, a move that represents the latest escalation of U.S. efforts to tear down Switzerland’s previously impenetrable wall of banking secrecy. Credit Suisse AG, Switzerland's second-largest bank, has begun notifying certain U.S. clients…
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