Wednesday 25 February 2009

Swiss finance sector halved if bank secrecy dropped

Switzerland’s key financial services industry could be decimated if its trademark secrecy is given up as part of reforms to cope with the global economic crisis, a prominent Swiss private banker warned.

4 comments:

Guanyu said...

Swiss finance sector halved if bank secrecy dropped

AFP
25 February 2009

GENEVA : Switzerland’s key financial services industry could be decimated if its trademark secrecy is given up as part of reforms to cope with the global economic crisis, a prominent Swiss private banker warned.

Without banking secrecy, “the financial centre would shrink by up to half of its current size,” Ivan Pictet, a private banker who heads the Geneva Financial Centre bank association, told Le Temps daily on Tuesday.

“Rather than making up about 12 percent of gross domestic product, the financial sector would make up just about six or seven,” he said when asked what would happen if Switzerland gives up its bank secrecy practices in the face of calls for greater financial system transparency.

Critics say that the system must be made more transparent so that financial risk can be more easily assessed and capital flows more easily monitored, two key failings contributing to the current crisis.

That has put Switzerland on the spot because its banking system has prided itself on offering complete secrecy for clients, which many critics claim means the country has in effect allowed wealthy foreign clients to evade tax.

In Switzerland, tax evasion is not a crime but tax fraud -- which involves the forgery of documents, is.

Swiss banking secrecy law prohibits banks in Switzerland from revealing any information to authorities or any third parties about their clients, except in cases involving recognized criminal investigations.

A Swiss bank would not therefore transmit details in cases of evasion but would do so only in instances of fraud.

Last week, UBS provided data on 250 to 300 clients to the US government and paid a fine of 780 million dollars to settle a case of abetting tax fraud by US clients, in a move seen at the time as easing the threat of change.

A day later, however, the US government filed a separate lawsuit to try to force UBS to disclose the identities of 52,000 US customers who allegedly evaded taxes, putting the issue back firmly in the spotlight.

Fears that the secrecy laws will be changed put Swiss banking stocks under pressure last Thursday, with UBS plunging almost 17 percent at one point.

UBS continued to tumble to historic lows on Tuesday, trading down 4.70 percent to 9.53 Swiss francs in afternoon trade.

Pictet said that Thursday’s falls in share values did not represent the expected cost to the industry should banking secrecy be abandoned.

“If (banking secrecy) were to disappear, the client would no longer have any reason to travel 500 kilometres to see his wealth manager,” he warned.

But international pressure is mounting, with European leaders preparing for the meeting of the Group of 20 nations in April calling Sunday for a list of “uncooperative jurisdictions” to be drawn up, with sanctions to be imposed.

Pictet said that was a “real threat” and called for Switzerland to “fight for equal treatment as all other financial centres such as Singapore.”

He said abolishing banking secrecy could have a “huge” impact on Geneva.

“The 140 or so banks which are in Geneva would no longer have reason to stay, they are here to offer Swiss banking secrecy.

“The traditional Swiss knowledge on wealth management would be insufficient in itself to compensate for the loss of the protection of the private sphere.”

Banking secrecy is meant to “protect the private sphere of the client and there is no prosperous financial centre that does not efficiently protect the confidentiality of its clients,” he said.

Pictet also rejected the suggestion that Switzerland’s financial centre thrives on tax evasion, saying it is “not the role of a banker to assure that his client is paying his taxes.

“That would require a police investigation before determining if the client could be accepted or not,” he added.

stonewall said...

The Establishment “ Cover up crimes”.

The ‘Doyens’ of the establishment.’ ( Ivan Pictet and Monty Raphael.)

Ivan Pictet.
Managing partner in Pictet & Cie Bank .--- Switzerland.
President of the Geneva Financial Centre.
World Bank.committee member.
United Nations. Investment Committee member,
Vice President – Global Humanitarian Forum.
Member of the Henokiens.
Blackstone Group --- Board Member.
Past- President – Geneva Private Bankers association.
Past –President – Geneva Chamber of Commerce and Industry.


Monty Raphael.
Quote.” ---- Doyen of U.K. Fraud lawyers.
Consultant & Head of Fraud and Regulatory Dept.
Member of Board of Directors of the Fraud Advisory panel.
Member of the Law Society of England & Wales.
International Bar Association Member.
Past President—London Criminal Court Solicitors Association.
Past Chairman ---of Anti Corruption Committee.
Founder of Business Crime Committee of the International Bar
Association.


Pictet & Cie Bank & Peters & Peters.

The bank and it’s officials deliberately withheld crucial documents requested under a High Court order.The bank and it’s officials deliberately withheld evidence from the Police , and one of it’s account managers Susan Broadhead gave a false witness statement to the police.
Another one of it’s managers Nicholas Campiche ( Now Head of Pictet – Alternative Investments.)concocted a letter pretending to be a client and closed his account. The senior partner (Ivan Pictet.)sought to have numerous documents destroyed,along with those copies held in their London office of P.A.M. Initially stating that they were forgeries then their lawyers Peters & Peters – Monty Raphael – and the barrister Charles Flint.Q.C.) –later had to admit in Court that the documents were genuine.

(1) It is a criminal offence for a bank to knowingly act for an undischarged criminal bankrupt in so far as it seeks to assist that criminal bankrupt in the fraudulent movement of monies. ( Money Laundering.)

(2) It is a criminal offence for a bank to lie to the police and the bankrupts trustee in bankruptcy in so far as any knowledge of, or dealings with the bank was refuted .

(3) A bank can be guilty of Contempt of Court if it fails to comply fully with the Courts order for discovery .

(4) The banks contempt is further compounded if it fails to address its error after it is specifically drawn to the to its solicitors attention. ( Monty Raphael).

(5) It is a criminal offence under the Financial Services Act to seek to destroy evidence that might be relevant to an investigation .

(6) It is a criminal offence not to relinquish control of funds to the Trustee immediately the fact of the bankruptcy is drawn to the banks attention.

(7) It is a criminal offence to lie or otherwise obfuscate the lawful and proper enquiries of the F.S.A.

On Dec 9th,2008. the complaint was sent to 150 Members of the House Of Lords and 230 Members of Parliament.

*** We thank ---David Cameron. M.P. ( Canary Wharf Speech.) Dec. 15th.2008.

(1) Bankers who behave irresponsibly should face professional consequences.
(2) If anyone is found to have behaved criminally they must be prosecuted.
(3) The F.S.A. and the Serious Fraud Office should be following up every lead, investigating every suspect transaction .
(4) We need to make it 100% clear –those who break the law should face prosecution.
(5) That we make sure we root out any wrongdoing that may have happened, whoever is involved ,however high or well connected they may be.

Quote. ( America’s Top Lawyer .)
You can be the richest man in the world with the best lawyers that money can buy but you cannot win against a man who has got nothing left to lose and is telling the truth.

Full Story.
Go to search box on “Google” and insert ( Ivan Pictet / Monty Raphael) or
insert ( Pictet & Cie / Monty Raphael.) - - then try it on “Yahoo”.
Or try (Jack Loach/ Ivan Pictet.)

Anonymous said...

*** Were currently waiting to see if the West Yorkshire Police :-
(1) Chief Constable ---- Sir Norman Bettison.
(2) Forces Solicitor ---- Mike Percival.
(3) Head of Economic Crimes Unit.--- Det. Chief Inspector Steven Taylor.

-- continue to attempt to cover this case up like their F.S.A. Counterparts.
If they do “ watch this space”)

We have recently been informed that due to pressure from our M.P. that the Ministry of Justice had asked Lord Myners to investigate our claims that the F.S.A. covered up the illegal activities of Pictet Asset Management. London. They might as well have asked Ivan Pictet to investigate .or Friends Reunited.

Lady Myners on Prix Pictet board.

The consensus of opinion is the Pictet & Cie should be prosecuted , and that their banking licence’s should be taken away in the U.K. ( and fined.)
Their solicitors at Peters & Peters --- struck off and prosecuted..
In America they would have all been in prison for the last seven years.


WEST YORKSHIRE POLICE.

We note that Det. Chief Inspector Steven Taylor has been removed as the Head of Economic Crime Unit and demoted to Det. Inspector. ( One down two to go).

A file of some 339 pages including scores of documentation as been forwarded to the following from Aug.4th to Aug.6th. 2011.

640 --- Members of Parliament.
460 --- Members of the House of Lords.
Ministry of Justice
F.S.A --- Financial Services Authority
Serious Fraud Office.
Peters & Peters. London. --- Solicitors.
Pictet & Cie. Bank ---- London & Geneva.
West Yorkshire Police Authority.
I.P.C.C. – Independent Police Complaints Commission.
C.C.R.C.—Criminal Cases Review Commission.
Swiss Ambassador London.

Anonymous said...

The Criminal Super Class.
Bankers.
Lawyers.
Police. April.2012.

Over approximately five years of hitting the internet with a case that involves criminality by a major Swiss Bank , Britain's most prominent fraud lawyer and a regional police force headed by one of Britains top policeman. ( Surely justice should prevail.)

In fact the complete opposite even though the offences committed are very serious.

Conspiring to Pervert the Course of Justice.
Perverting the Course of Justice.
Contempt of Court.------------------ plus a dozen or so smaller offences.

In the five years some 6-7million e-mails have been forwarded to all Members of Parliaments in Britain and Switzerland, every barrister and chambers in Europe .
Every law inforcement body in both countries , and America. Even raised in Parliament twice.

The banking fraternity fully aware of this case still decide to give the Private Banker of the Year Award to Ivan Pictet --- Pictet & Cie Bank. ( Him being the person most responsible for the crimes committed by him and his bank partners. )

The legal fraternity decided that Monty Raphael of Peters & Peters . London became an honourable Queens Counsellor and to rub the salt in six months later made a Master of the Bench. He also was guilty of all the above offences but so what. At this rate he might become King by the end of the year.

The police ( West Yorkshire Police.) headed by Sir Norman Bettison has not improved as a force on fighting crime. They are now worse than the days of the Yorkshire Ripper , when they had him in custody nine times and let him go. If it hadn't been for the South Yorkshire Police force catching the Ripper he would have still been at large to day .


Then they wonder why the man in the street becomes angry and decides to riot.
Even after five years of exposing their crimes on the internet , they dare not take legal action to stop us --- no injunctions --- no writs – they can't risk going to jail.
All we can do is to continue pressing for justice and up the pressure on the internet. For the next five years and beyond.