Basler KB to pay $60.4 mln to settle U.S. tax dispute (updated)

Basler Kantonalbank

28/08/2018 19:40

(Adds Basler KB comment, background)
    WASHINGTON/ZURICH, Aug 28 (Reuters) - Basler Kantonalbank
 BSKP.S  said on Tuesday it had settled a long-standing tax
dispute with the U.S. Justice Department and will pay $60.4
million in penalties, less than the 100 million Swiss francs
($100 million) it had set aside for the purpose.
    "The bank signed a Deferred Prosecution Agreement and
committed to pay $60.4 million. The bank had made a provision of
100 million Swiss francs for this purpose in December 2013," the
bank said in a statement.
    It said it would release the remaining provision of around
33 million francs, which would boost the bank's results in the
second half of 2018.
    The U.S. Justice Department said in a separate statement the
Swiss bank admitted in the agreement that between 2002 and 2012
it conspired with employees, external asset managers and clients
to commit tax evasion and file false federal tax returns.
    At its peak in 2010, the value of the accounts it held for
U.S. customers totaled approximately $813.2 million, according
to the department, which added that many but not all of those
accounts were used for tax evasion.
    Switzerland's biggest cantonal bank, Zuercher Kantonalbank
(ZKB)  ZKB.UL , settled a similar U.S. investigation earlier
this month, agreeing to pay about $98 million.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N1V11WE
    The cases emerged from a U.S. crackdown on offshore tax
evasion by wealthy Americans utilizing undeclared Swiss bank
accounts.
($1 = 0.9957 Swiss francs)

 (Reporting by Lisa Lambert in Washington and Silke Koltrowitz
in Zurich
Editing by Chizu Nomiyama/David Evans)
 ((lisa.lambert@thomsonreuters.com; +1 202 898 8328; Reuters
Messaging: lisa.lambert.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))