According to a report published in Swiss daily Sonntags Zeitung, the country’s Finance Minster Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf wants banks to go a step further than requiring a tax declaration from foreign customers and wants them to examine suspected cases of evasion to ensure they are respecting the law.
Widmer-Schlumpf, who is under pressure to reach an agreement with the US over undeclared assets in Swiss accounts, is expected to put the suggestion to ministers on 22 February 2012, the report added.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Access deeper industry intelligence
Experience unmatched clarity with a single platform that combines unique data, AI, and human expertise.
More than ten Swiss banks are in serious trouble in the US for allegedly having helped thousands of clients avoid paying taxes.
Last month, oldest Swiss bank Wegelin became the first casualty as the US assault intensified and the bank has to dispose its non-US business in a bid to protect its assets. Just last week, the bank has also been declared a "fugitive" by a court in New York after it failed to show up for a hearing there.
Governments, which once turned a blind eye to their wealthy citizens’ offshore tax acrobatics, now hungrily hunt every penny in tax revenue as they are strapped for cash now. So the war on banking secrecy is only turning hot.
The Swiss government had to take this decision as pressure on it started mounting from all directions and was left with no other option but to take decisions. The message is very clear for Swiss banks to either change according to times or be prepared to perish.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalDataThough the proposed rule will have far reaching consequences for Swiss banking industry and may even lead to an end of the country’s famed banking secrecy, we believe the decision is a step in the right direction and will keep Swiss their banking system relevant in new tax disclosed world.
It wasn’t necessarily banking secrecy that encouraged many to deposit their money in Switzerland. The country represented above all, a secure place where savings maintained their value given their stable currency. And even today, in the euro crisis, the same phenomenon exists.
Hence, even if the decision creates uncertainty and show negative impact for business in short term, it will create an everlasting positive platform for Swiss bank to do business confidently anywhere in the globe as it is the only way to resolve the lingering problem.
