Geneva (AFP) – The noose is tightening on Wednesday HSBC Bank (Switzerland), the center of SwissLeaks, a huge scandal of tax fraud and money laundering, with the announcement of a criminal investigation against him in Switzerland, and searches of its premises.
The Geneva prosecutor announced conduct a search at the headquarters of HSBC (Switzerland) in Geneva and had opened an investigation for aggravated money laundering against the establishment and against X.
This announcement darkens a little the reputation of Swiss banks, undermined for months by foreign judges, which multiply procedures against them for fraud and tax evasion .
Concerning the case HSBC (Switzerland), the case took a new turn, as this is now the Swiss courts which occurs 10 days after the revelation of the scandal SwissLeaks by a consortium of international newspapers .
Until then, the Swiss bank subsidiary of the British bank HSBC, was not subject to prosecution as from foreign prosecutors and seemed safe in its territory.
No investigation had been opened against him by FINMA, the Swiss supervisory authority for financial markets.
In a statement issued after the search, HSBC (Switzerland) said “cooperate continuously with the Swiss authorities since we reviewed the data theft in 2008 and continue to cooperate “
-. Prison sentences and / or fines –
At Abroad, however, HSBC (Switzerland) had already pursued in the judiciary, as in France and Belgium.
Specifically, the Swiss courts, in this case the public prosecutor of the canton of Geneva, opened an investigation against the bank and against X for aggravated money laundering.
The bank risk a large fine. Prison sentences are also possible, up to 5 years in prison.
Currently, the investigation is conducted against the bank, but it is possible that it be extended against individuals warns already the prosecution of Geneva.
The searches were conducted by Olivier Jornot, Attorney General of Guangzhou.
HSBC (Switzerland) is at the center of the revelations of Swissleaks published Feb. 9 by a consortium of foreign newspapers controlled by the French newspaper Le Monde.
These papers have studied for months data stolen in 2007 by a former HSBC computer (Switzerland), Hervé Falciani which they were transmitted by an informant on a USB stick.
These data revealed that in November 2006 and March 2007, billions of dollars belonging to more than 100,000 customers and 20,000 people moral transited on bank accounts in Switzerland, hidden behind shell companies or offshore structures.
The amount of hidden assets by French HSBC would be 5.7 billion euros, for nearly 9,000 customers.
This week in Paris, opened the trial for tax evasion against the heiress of the fashion house Nina Ricci, accused of hiding more than 18 million Euro-Swiss HSBC
-. The practices of the past –
Upon publication of SwissLeaks, the Geneva bank said that these practices were denounced the “past”. The bank also said to have completely changed strategy after 2008 and have cleaned up its portfolio clients.
HSBC Bank (Switzerland) is not the only one in the crosshairs of foreign judges .
UBS, number 1 industry in Switzerland and world number 1 asset management, is in the eye of the storm in France. French judges issued an arrest warrant against three former executives of the bank executives indicted for aggravated tax fraud laundering.
UBS is suspected by France to have canvassed illegally wealthy French clients to open up accounts in Switzerland, unbeknownst to the tax authorities.
The arrest warrants were issued for the three former executives did not respond to a summons.
Installed in Switzerland, the three former executives were until the late 2000s in charge of asset management for the Western Europe for one of them, and for France for two others.
As part of this investigation, UBS of a deposit of 1.1 billion euros imposed by French judges.
UBS denies the laundering charges of tax fraud.
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