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 News from the financial sectors in Spain and the Canary Islands Bank confidentiality Whistle-blowers undermine confidence Bank confidentiality suffered another knock when it was revealed that a whistle-blower obtained the names of 130,000 clients of a Swiss bank and passed them on to the French tax authorities.  When the data theft originally came to light in early December, HSBC insisted less than ten wealthy clients were involved. However later it was revealed that the French tax authorities actually have 130,000 names belonging to the bank’s clients from “many other countries”. The list is thought to have been passed to France’s chief prosecutor for possible investigation into money laundering. France can potentially pass the list on to the tax authorities of the other countries whose residents appear on the list. Switzerland reacted angrily to the news and said it will suspend ratification of the double taxation agreement (DTA) with France, claiming that the names were illegally obtained. France is keen to complete the process, maintaining that it had not broken any French laws. It subsequently said that it would hand back the information, though Switzerland remained concerned over what the French tax authorities will do with the data, This latest whistle-blower revelation from France follows on from the controversial incident in February of 2008 when it was exposed that another former bank employee and informant sold stolen data from LGT bank in Liechtenstein to Germany and the UK, with many other countries also benefiting from information on their citizens evading tax through holding bank accounts in the tax haven. In the US whistleblower Bradley Birkenfeld supplied information on 19,000 suspected US tax evaders in 2007 which eventually led to the US forcing Swiss bank UBS to disclose names of 4,450 US account holders. The US has an official whistle-blower programme in return for a portion of the revenue collected from the information given. Other countries may well consider setting up their own schemes for tax informers who can break through the barriers of bank secrecy and gain confidential information on account holders. The global financial crisis fuelled governments with a determination to reap in unpaid tax from tax evaders to boost their exhausted treasuries. The days are numbered for offshore banking confidentiality. There are various legitimate structures available to beat the taxman where people can place their money honestly and so have no fear of being ‘caught out’ by their tax authority. A specialist tax and wealth management firm such as Blevins Franks can advise you on how to reduce taxation and protect your assets for the future for you and your heirs. To keep in touch with the latest developments in the offshore world, check out the latest news on our website www.blevinsfranks.com By Bill Blevins, Financial Correspondent, Blevins Franks This article appears in the print edition 609 of Island Connections
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