UBS won’t break secrecy laws, Switzerland under the threat of blacklisting

While the Swiss largest bank for wealthy customers UBS AG makes hard efforts to restore its reputation before the clients and thus keep to the laws of Switzerland on bank secrecy the U.S. government along with other nations in Europe are seeking to establish corresponding regulations to ban tax heavens in the world. On Wednesday during a hearing at the U.S. Congress Mark Branson, chief financial officer of UBS Global Wealth Management and Swiss Bank, sated that the bank has no intend to provide the client names being sought in a U.S. Internal Revenue Service lawsuit.

"UBS has now complied ... to the fullest extent possible without subjecting its employees to criminal prosecution in Switzerland," said Branson.

Several hours before the hearing UBS announced that the bank’s chairman Peter Kurer will be replaced by Swiss politician Kaspar Villiger in a move to help the company out of its slumping condition. During Kurer’s stewardship the bank’s shares lost about 70% of the value. The announcement came after last week the ban appointed former Credit Suisse head Oswald Gruebel as chief executive.

While Branson expressed the UBS’ regret about its breach of U.S. laws he still insisted on diplomatic resolution rather than court proceedings. In this regard subcommittee chairman Senator Carl Levin didn’t fail to show his frustration over the banker’s relies calling them “needlessly evasive”. He noted that though the U.S. has no ability to change Swiss laws the U.S. Congress will pass corresponding laws in America.

Separately British Prime Minister Gordon Brown called on world governments to "outlaw offshore tax havens." And during the meeting of G20 in London next month world leaders are going to discuss the problem of tax heavens with the possible outcome for Switzerland to be blacklisted as a nation that fosters tax cheats.