“We’re in ongoing full cooperation and dialogue with the US authorities and we’re confident and committed that we will find a solution,’’ Julius Baer’s chief executive, Boris Collardi, said during the presentation of the bank’s full-year results yesterday.
Collardi said he was unable to predict the size of any fine his bank might face in the United States, and whether Julius Baer might face legal action.
“We have not made any provision with regard to the US because we can’t reliably assess how much a related payment would be at this stage,’’ he said.
“There is no indication of an indictment nor do we expect this to change in the wake of the Wegelin situation,’’ he added.
The US investigation against Julius Baer and other Swiss banks follows the successful case against UBS AG, which culminated in Switzerland’s biggest bank having to pay a $780 million fine and hand over 4,450 clients’ files to Washington in 2010. Since then, an amnesty program and the arrest of several Swiss bankers have given US authorities ample ammunition to pursue some of the country’s other banks.
As part of their case against the Swiss banks, US authorities have demanded detailed information about their past business operations in the United States.
Also yesterday, European Union tax commissioner Algirdas Semeta said Switzerland must eliminate banking secrecy and renegotiate tax accords with Britain and Germany that clash with regional initiatives.
While Switzerland agreed in March 2009 to meet international standards to avoid being blacklisted as a tax haven by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, bilateral agreements signed in September with Germany and Britain allow client identities to remain secret.
“Banking secrecy that allows companies or individuals to hide taxes has no future,’’ Semeta said in an interview in Brussels, adding that he wants to crack down on EU citizens using Swiss bank accounts to hide money. “If we knew the exact amount of tax evaded, we would present a bill to Switzerland.’’
