MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Washington demands Swiss banks hand over information on US citizens dodging taxes

If not Credit Suisse and nine other banks “face charges”, according to the report

The United States has written to Switzerland to demand it hands over detailed information this week on its citizens using Swiss accounts to dodge tax or see Credit Suisse and nine other banks face charges, newspapers reported.

The letter, quoted by two Swiss Sunday papers, was sent by US Deputy Attorney General James Cole on August 31 and demands detailed figures on tax evasion at Credit Suisse by Tuesday and also seek information from nine other smaller Swiss banks.

In the letter, Cole demands that Switzerland quickly deliver a significant number of client accounts, the SonntagsZeitung reported, adding that US authorities are also ready to examine a Swiss offer to settle the dispute.

Mario Tuor, a spokesman for the Swiss department for international financial affairs, would only say that Switzerland was in contact with the United States but declined to comment on the letter.

“We are seeking a solution on the basis of existing laws,” he said.

Switzerland last month made a proposal to try to kick-start talks to settle its impasse with US authorities, offering to hand over data on groups of clients under a pending new bilateral tax treaty despite strict bank secrecy.

A long tradition of bank secrecy has helped Switzerland build up a 2 trillion dollars offshore financial industry, but the country has agreed in recent years to do more to help hunt tax cheats amid a global crackdown on tax havens.