Coutts & Co has denied claims that account
details of suspected tax dodgers were leaked and sold to German
authorities.
According to the Financial Times Deutschland,
a CD with the names of 1,000 clients of the bank’s Swiss branch was
sold for £2.75m ($4.25m) sold to officials of the western German
state of North Rhine-Westphalia last week.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Coutts has released a statement rebutting
these claims, insisting that the confidentiality of customers’
accounts is taken “extremely seriously”.
There is no indication of who sold the client
details to North Rhine-Westphalia officials.
Germany persists with
tax probe
How well do you really know your competitors?
Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.
Thank you!
Your download email will arrive shortly
Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample
We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form
By GlobalDataThe situation is unlikely to alleviate
tensions between Germany and Switzerland. The two countries have
become embroiled over German authorities probing into secret Swiss
accounts.
PBI reported on 12 July that German
clients of Credit Suisse were being investigated over alleged tax
evasion.
Last year the Swiss bank paid German
prosecutors €150m ($184m) to stop an investigation into whether it
had assisted clients in dodging taxes.
