10 Tax Havens Agree to Curtail Bank Secrecy

Brown enlists Obama to help crack down on offshore facilities

(NEWSER) - Ahead of the G20 financial summit in London this April, Gordon Brown is pushing ahead with a major diplomatic effort to crack down on international tax havens that cost governments $150 billion a year. The British PM has held talks with fellow world leaders, including Barack Obama, reports the Guardian. While Obama has taken an interest in the Cayman Islands, Brown is pressing Switzerland to close its many loopholes. More»

International pressure bends EU nation, but Switzerland is the prize

(NEWSER) - Liechtenstein, bowing to international pressure, said today it would adopt international standards on transparency in tax matters, turning the screws on other tax havens like Switzerland, the New York Times reports. Yesterday, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development added Switzerland, Luxembourg, and others to a list of tax havens already including Liechtenstein. One financial diplomat said Switzerland and Luxembourg are Europe’s, and the OECD’s, real targets. More»

White House declines 5 requests for talks from humiliated prime minister

(NEWSER) - Brit papers are buzzing about President Obama's snub of visiting Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who asked for a meeting five times. Brown—keen to boost his profile as an international statesman as his poll numbers flatline in Britain—had to settle for a 15-minute "walk and talk" with Obama in the UN kitchens yesterday. The spurned prime minister "lurched from being hailed as a global statesman to intense embarrassment," the Guardian noted. More»

(NEWSER) - UBS will hand over the names of 4,450 of its American account holders as part of a tax evasion settlement, the Wall Street Journal reports, and another 5,000 names will be produced under a special IRS amnesty program. UBS won’t pay a monetary fine. Those being turned over may have a chance to fight the disclosure in Swiss court. The compromise gets around potential Swiss objections to the disclosures. More»

Bank blames US tax fraud case for some of its 1Q losses

(NEWSER) - Bad times are continuing for UBS in the wake of last year's record loss, the Guardian reports. The troubled Swiss bank reported a $1.75 billion loss in the first quarter, and announced plans to ax 8,700 employees—11% of its global workforce—sparking rumors that it plans to downsize by ditching its investment banking arm to concentrate on wealth management. More»