UBS to pay €5 million fine for Credit Suisse's role in tax evasion

UBS has accepted a €5 million settlement with the Dutch Public Prosecution Service regarding the past actions of Credit Suisse, which UBS acquired in 2023. The fine follows an investigation into how Credit Suisse assisted Dutch clients in concealing assets in Swiss bank accounts to avoid taxation.

Between 2005 and 2015, the bank was suspected of complicity in 80 incorrect tax filings for twelve specific clients. According to the prosecution, the bank provided services to help clients keep wealth hidden, such as using code names, maintaining banking correspondence at the bank, and establishing companies in jurisdictions that do not exchange fiscal information with the Netherlands.

The investigation, launched by the FIOD in 2016, focused on the former legal entity of Credit Suisse. While employees in the Netherlands performed executive roles, management operated from Switzerland. UBS stated that the settlement does not constitute an admission of criminal liability and emphasized its zero-tolerance policy regarding such practices.