“The Swiss bank is suspected of having directly, and not via its Belgian subsidiary, approached Belgian clients to convince them to set up structures aimed at evading taxes,” prosecutors said.
Jennifer Vanderputten, the spokesperson for the crown prosecutor, said that UBS is suspected of actively seeking out clients in Belgium with the intent to help them evade taxes.
Providing scant detail, Vanderputten credited cooperation with French authorities for bringing charges against Switzerland’s biggest bank.
The head of the Belgian division of UBS was charged in June 2014 on suspicion that he and the firm helped wealthy clients avoid paying billions of euros in taxes. It is thought that UBS could have been providing this “service” for more than a decade.
In February 2015, UBS confirmed that it was being investigated by the US tax authorities, having already paid a $780m penalty for similar charges in 2009.
UBS denied that its Belgian division had ever supported tax evasion, saying it “will continue to defend itself against any unfounded allegations”.
