Swiss banks Cornèr Banca and Bank Coop have reached resolutions with the US Department of Justice (DoJ) over the tax evasion cases under the department’s Swiss bank programme.
Cornèr Banca will pay $5.06m and Bank Coop will pay $3.2m in penalties to the US to avoid prosecution over allegations accusing them of helping Americans evade taxes.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Access deeper industry intelligence
Experience unmatched clarity with a single platform that combines unique data, AI, and human expertise.
As per the terms of the non-prosecution agreements, the banks have agreed to cooperate in any related criminal or civil proceedings and demonstrate implementation of controls to prevent misconduct.
The DoJ said that Cornèr maintained and serviced 898 US related accounts with over $351m in assets since 1 August 2008.
Based in Lugano, Switzerland, Cornèr offers a full range of traditional banking services and also specializes in private banking, payment cards and securities trading.
Cornèr maintained correspondent accounts at a US bank to facilitate certain transactions for its clients and also the bank’s relationship managers travelled to the US at least 10 times to visit existing Cornèr clients between 2001 and 2008.
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 GlobalDataThe bank also allowed its US clients to enter into hold-mail agreements in order to hide assets and income from the IRS. It also provided its US clients with the option to request numbered accounts, including code-name accounts.
The department added that Bank Coop offered a variety of traditional Swiss banking services including hold mail, numbered accounts and travel cash cards to help US clients in hiding their assets.
The Swiss retail bank held a total of 385 US related accounts with approximately $71.4m in assets under management since 1 August 2008.
Bank Coop had also processed substantial cash withdrawals related to the closure of some US accounts. It also maintained accounts held in the name of non-US entities, including a Panama corporation and a Hong Kong corporation.
