Following the precedent set by the United States Government’s settlement with UBS in 2009, the United States Government has offered eleven (11) financial institutions in Switzerland and Israel a settlement agreement in which the United States Government’s investigations in these financial institutions for aiding tax evasion and potential prosecution would be dropped. The terms of this agreement would be similar to the UBS settlement in 2009 and would require each of the eleven (11) Swiss and Israeli financial institutions (the “Swiss and Israeli Banks”) to share data regarding United States clients and, most likely, pay a fine.

The eleven (11) Swiss and Israeli Banks are believed to be Credit Suisse, Julius Baer, HSBC Switzerland, Basler Kantonalbank, Zürcher Kantonalbank, NZB Neue Zürcher Bank AG, Wegelin & Co. Privatebankiers Gesellshafter Bruderer Hummel, Tolle & Co., Liechtensteinischen Landesbank, Bank Leumi le-Israel Trust Company Ltd., Bank Hapoalim and Mizrahi Tefahot Bank. For further information on Credit Suisse and the disclosure of United States client status, please visit our previous Practice Update dated November 18, 2011 by clicking here.

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