UBS Banker Detained in Tax Inquiry

NEW YORK -- A top-ranking UBS executive was briefly detained by federal authorities in the United States in connection with a widening investigation into the Swiss bank’s work with questionable tax transactions, the bank said Wednesday, according to The New York Times.

The bank declined to name the executive, but a person briefed on the matter identified him as Martin Liechti, according to the paper. Liechti, whose title is head of wealth management, Americas International, is UBS’s top private banker for the Americas.

The Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission are investigating UBS for its work involving tax issues from 2000 to 2007. The investigation concerns information provided by Swiss-based UBS advisers that may have allowed American clients to evade their tax obligations. In addition, UBS said the SEC is examining whether those advisers should have register with the agency, according to the paper.

“UBS is cooperating with these investigations,” the bank said in a statement, according to the paper.

-- NYSSCPA.org News Staff

Posted on 5/7/08