It's good to see that Switzerland is still fighting the good fight, at least.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?p...d=a5YQivGDnNjA

watch them step aside neatly as the US extra-territorial jurisdiction steamroller gets closer ... UBS as it exists today is history - they just don't know it yet

UBS in reality does not depend on the bank-secrecy as it was, as its services also without that kind of business will be of high quality. Experts apparently say that the loss of business however is to be in the 10 to 15 percent range which of course is drastic. Oh no, they know it quite well.

The new USA Switzerland agreement will be pushed by the federal government in Berne as it is of supreme importance. So that, if the USA side goes ahead with the deal they will get something, and they even get if free of charge.

The Swiss Government will have to decide once and for all whether it want secrecy or not.
I am a p*ssed off with the way they are conducting themselves of late especially with regard to giving in to the USA and EEC buro-craps.

People with businesses and private accounts that use Switzerland need to know where they stand with regard to disclosure to governments and Inland Revenues of other countries.

you know where you stand already, if your using switzerland to dodge paying tax in your home country then you may be in trouble. If not then your fine, thats the way its always been

It's not the Government that can decide this. It's up to the people as such a measure would go to a referendum. A few years ago the people rejected a move to change banking secrecy.

Perhaps Russia would be a better place to use for off-shore companies in the future; they don't seem to like the USA or Western Europe at tax is a flat rate of 13% I believe.

conveniently the US and EU have provided you with a list of all the tax haven countries, start at the top and make your way down

I just wish they would decide once and for all how they are going to report holdings in Switzerland to the US.

I know there are a lot of wealthy individuals that are trying to hide money here so that they don't have to pay taxes. But, they make it difficult for those of us who are here but don't have a lot of money to open and hold accounts without having to file all of the disclosure paperwork.

Where is this list please?

just send me all your money and I'll look after it for you

Tax havens?

The biggest are the UK and the US... [Economist, free until may 2010]

Yes, and I can hide it so well, even you can't look for it

New study - Britain and the U.S. may be the dirtiest tax havens.

I have to agree that the UK is the easiest and cheapest place to form a Limited Company, Open a Bank Account, get Cash Point Cards, Move Money around, close everything up and then have the company struck off the register.

I don't understand what all the fuss is here. The banks have basically made the fatal mistake of admitting to the most powerful governments in the world that they KNOW that they are being used to avoid tax, ie: money that is rightfully belonging to said uber-governments, and possibly (definately)even hold criminal assets. They can't expect to retain their previous status in light of that.

...And with that package comes Putin along. Nothing is perfect.

Most powerful military, you mean.

Remember: the US taxes non-residents which causes a lot of these issues in the first place. And: if you decide not to pay your taxes to the IRS then you are assumed to be a criminal and your assets can be sieized.

And then there is the SWIFT incident?

Frankly, if non-US financials only have a presence in the US to make money. Make it too difficult or too onerous, and they'll leave.

Ditto for the huge US deficit and debt: Start acting arbitrarily and randomly, the buyers of the debt will stop buying.

Hah! This might have been true 50 years ago, but now, c'mon. We'll see when China first goes to war...

Fixed it for you, such a shame the generals and ground troops don't have a clue how to use them properly.