Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Swiss Bank Pictet & Cie On DOJ Tax Radar Screen (11/27/12)

The news services report that the Justice Department is investigating Swiss bank Pictet & Cie.   See U.S. justice department probes Swiss bank Pictet (Reuters 11/25/12), here.  This should not be news to anyone paying attention to the unfolding events.

The introductory bullet points in the article are:
  • Pictet says will cooperate with U.S. justice
  • Pictet says business with U.S. clients complies with law
  • Bank had already handed over account data
  • Swiss seeking deal to get investigations dropped

The following is from a Tax Notes Today article, Kristen A. Parillo, Swiss Bank Pictet Under Investigation by Justice Department, 2012 TNT 228-3 (11/27/12)
Jeffrey A. Neiman, the former assistant U.S. attorney who led the prosecution of Swiss bank UBS, said that it's clear from Pictet's November 26 statement that the bank is under investigation by a federal grand jury. "I think we need look no further than the Wegelin matter to see how the Justice Department views Swiss cantonal banks who continue to assist Americans with assets overseas," said Neiman, who is now a criminal defense attorney in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., referring to the U.S. government's February indictment of Swiss bank Wegelin & Co. for facilitating criminal tax fraud. "This is a clear message that the U.S. government's efforts to bring Americans into compliance is still ongoing." (For prior coverage of the Wegelin case, see Doc 2012-2872  or 2012 TNT 29-8 .) 
Edward M. Robbins Jr., a former U.S. prosecutor now with Hochman, Salkin, Rettig, Toscher & Perez PC, said it was clear Pictet was on the U.S. government's radar because IRS criminal investigators who were assisting Southern District of New York prosecutors in their grand jury investigations of offshore banks have interviewed participants of the IRS's offshore voluntary disclosure initiatives (OVDI) who disclosed Pictet as one of the banks they did business with. 
"The OVDI clients were questioned about their relationship with Pictet," Robbins said. "That led me to believe there is an ongoing grand jury investigation and that the grand jury is focusing on Pictet. Beyond that, you can draw any conclusions."

5 comments:

  1. Bank Frey is also now "on the list".

    What is interesting is the interplay between this recent news and IRS OVDP FAQ 21: "the IRS may announce that certain taxpayer groups that have or had accounts at specific financial institutions will be ineligible due to U.S. government actions in connection with the specific financial institution."

    Could the IRS now close the OVDP door to account holders at Frey and Pictet? This did not occur this past summer when it was announced that Liechtensteinische Landesbank was turning over banking info to DOJ. The OVDP door remained open to taxpayers with accounts at LLB. How long the OVDP door will remain open is an important unknown.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Asher,


    Thanks for the comment. The IRS could close the door. The IRS makes the rules of the voluntary disclosure game. However, it does not seem to me that the IRS would want to do that. But I am not the rulemaker.


    Jack Townsend

    ReplyDelete
  3. Minor point, but Neiman is calling Wegelin and Pictet "cantonal" banks. These are "private" banks meaning their stock is not sold to the general public. Cantonal banks are owned by a canton (similar to one of the 50 states in the US.)

    Also, Pictet is one of the (very few) banks still offering accounts to Americans. Clients must waive any bank secrecy to the US. Pictet has high fees and high minimums.

    ReplyDelete
  4. .Swiss Bank
    Accounts.

    Is your
    monies safe in these accounts ---- definitely NOT.

    Would you get
    your money back if every body decided to withdraw all their accounts
    – NO WAY.

    Economic
    Experts say that there would only enough money to repay 50% of their
    clients.

    Are you going
    to be in the 50% --- that loose your money.-- Get it out NOW.

    2012 -- - June.
    -- Published in Anglo INFO .Geneva.--- USA Trust Fund Investors were
    sent false and fraudulent documents by Pictet Bank.Switzerland. in
    order to collect large fees. ( Like MADOFF) ---Even after the SEC in
    the USA uncovered the fraud Pictet continued to charge fees and drain
    whatever was left in these accounts. Estimated that $90,000,000
    million lost in this Pictet Ponzi scheme.

    2012 - - - July.
    -- De – Spiegel. -- states – Pictet Bank uses a letterbox
    company in

    Panama
    and a tax loophole involving investments in London to gain

    German
    millionaires as clients.



    2012
    - - - August ---- German Opposition Leader accuses Swiss Banks of
    "organised crime."

    All
    the fines that crooked Swiss banks have incurred in the last few
    years exceeds £15.Billion.

    It
    is also calculated that the secrecy " agreements" with
    regards to tax evation by their clients will cost the banks another
    £45 Billion.

    The
    banks are panicking --- the are quickly restructuring their banks
    ---- from partnerships --

    to
    " LIMITED COMPANIES." ----- this will probably mean that
    in the future --- they could

    pay
    you only 10% of your monies " if you are one of the lucky ones"
    ---- and it be legal.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Sods -----
    Law.

    February.----
    2014.

    For almost two
    decades we have strived to get justice for the injustice we have
    suffered at the hands of a world renowned bank--- PICTET & CIE.
    BANK.

    Two yorkshiremen
    both running their own small family businesses trying to resolve the
    problem by taking all the correct legal procedures to recover their
    monies.

    The matter was
    raised in Parliament – twice-- the FSA investigated the matter
    concluding that PICTET had rogues operating in their London Bank ---
    but the rogues had left ---saying no one left to prosecute.??? -----
    so there.

    We then
    approached the Financial Ombudsman Service. (FOS) --- our case was
    dealt with by seven different people ---- then our numerous E-Mails
    were ignored --- nobody would speak to us -------so there.

    We then asked the
    SFO ( Serious Fraud Office.) to investigate our case ---- the
    criteria of our case ticked all their boxes. --- we were instructed
    not to send them any documents/evidence.------ in fact they wrote to
    us advising us to go to the Citizen's Advice Bureau.(CAB.)

    Richard Alderman
    the SFO boss ---- who responded to our letter was the same man who
    would not investigate the “ Madoff” scandal or the “Libor”
    fiasco.

    The MP's
    committee ---- said he was sloppy--- and the SFO was run like “
    Fred Karno's Circus” ----- it was an office of fraud.----- so
    there.

    Our M.P.
    approached our local Chief Constable to investigate----- he was
    called---- Sir Norman Bettison--- Chief Constable of West Yorkshire
    Police ---- a force that made “ Dad's Army” look like the S.A.S.
    They were inept – corrupt ---malicious --- from top to bottom. We
    were criminally dealt with by the Forces Solicitor---- the Head of
    the Economic Crime Unit ----and the Chief Constable ----- so there.

    We were then
    advised to pass our complaint against West Yorkshire Police to the
    I.P.C.C. – which we did --- they advised us to make our complaint
    to ---- the West Yorkshire Police --- we did with reluctance --- all
    we got was abuse and obfuscation. ----- so there.

    Sir Norman
    Bettison ---- The Forces solicitor--- and the Head of the Economic
    Crime ---- have all been removed from their posts and facing criminal
    allegations.

    ------ so there.

    We even sought
    justice through the Courts --- culminating in a visit to the Court of
    Appeal-London.--- On leaving the Courts of Appeal that day our
    barrister a “rising star” informed us --- that if that was
    Justice then you can keep it. He quit the law and moved to Canada
    ----- so there.

    A few years later
    we learned that one of the judges in our case at the Court of Appeal
    was related to a senior executive of the Pictet Bank -----so there.

    Pictet & Cie
    .Bank --- voted private bank of the year 2013.

    Ivan Pictet ----
    Voted banker of the year 2012. ---- the senior partner --- lied on
    numerous occasions and had documents destroyed --- also said genuine
    documents were forgeries. ----- so there.

    Ivan Pictet in
    Oct. 2013 ---- Given the Legion of Honour --- but saying that ----
    honours were given to Hitler --- Eichmann --- Mussolini ---Franco
    --- he's in fitting company. ----so there.

    MONTY
    RAPHAEL.Q.C. -- Peters & Peters.London. They were the banks
    lawyers.

    Monty
    Raphael.Q.C. along with Ivan Pictet withheld crucial documents
    requested by the High Court ---- the FSA ---- and the police Fraud
    Squad. ----so there.

    Monty
    Raphael.Q.C. became an Honorary Queens Counsellor in March. 2012.

    Monty
    Raphael.Q.C. became a Master of the Bench in Nov.2012.

    An expert in
    Fraud ---the Doyen of Fraud Lawyers. ----- so there.

    This says a lot
    about Banks --- the consensus of opinion is that they are highly paid
    “crooks” ---- no wonder they voted Ivan Pictet banker of the
    year.

    It appears that
    crimes in the “establishment.” are honoured by their peers.

    “HONOURS
    AMONG THIEVES.”



    Full Story.----
    “google or Yahoo”

    Insert.

    Ivan
    Pictet.Banker.

    Monty
    Raphael.Q.C.

    Ivan Pictet/Monty
    Raphael.

    ReplyDelete

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