23/09/2014
Money-laundering and tax fraud: EUR1.1bn caution against UBS confirmed in Paris
p { margin-bottom: 0.1in; line-height: 120%; } The Paris appeals court on Monday confirmed a verdict of French judges to impose a caution of EUR1.1bn on UBS, as part of an investigation into suspected money-laundering and tax fraud, the news agency Reuters reports, citing a legal source. The verdict of the court of instruction at the Paris court of appeals complies with the official orders of the attorney general. The Swiss bank had appealed the caution, which represents 42.6% of last years’ profits at UBS after taxes, and 2.8% of its owners’ equity, on the grounds that it contests the “legal basis” and the “method of calculation.” After being placed under investigation for aggravated money-laundering for tax fraud in July, the bank, which was already under investigation for illicit operations, saw its caution raised from EUR2.875m, which had already been paid, to EUR1.1bn. The judges suspect the bank of having set up a system of money-laundering to allow French residents to conceal their assets from the tax authorities. The suspected money-laundering took place from 2004 to 2012, a practice aggravated by its “habitual character,” investigators claim. UBS faces a fine of EUR3.75bn for illicit operations, and half of the value of the funds which were involved in the suspected money-laundering operations.
