Swiss Life Sets Aside $70 Mn To Resolve US Tax Case

Swiss insurer Swiss Life said Tuesday it had set aside over $70 million to resolve US tax charges over prior dealings with American clients, impacting its 2020 profit

Zurich, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 2nd Mar, 2021 ):Swiss insurer Swiss Life said Tuesday it had set aside over $70 million to resolve US tax charges over prior dealings with American clients, impacting its 2020 profit.

The firm said its net profit last year fell 13 percent, to 1.05 billion Swiss francs ($1.1 billion, 953 million euros), attributing much of the drop to the expected resolution of a case brought by the US Department of Justice in 2017.

Swiss Life said in a statement that it was "now in advanced discussions with the DOJ about the resolution of their inquiry." "As a result, Swiss Life has taken a provision of 70 million Swiss francs charged against the 2020 results to address the financial component of the expected resolution," it added.

The company said it expected the matter to be resolved "in the near term", but stressed the discussions with US authorities were still ongoing, meaning "the final number could be somewhat higher.

" The case involves the Swiss Life Liechtenstein and Singapore units' past cross-border business with American clients.

In recent years, the United States has tightened its crackdown on tax evasion by requiring foreign financial institutions to report assets held by US citizens.

In order to keep access to the US market, Switzerland agreed to dismantle its long cherished bank secrecy practices.

Back in 2017, Swiss Life said its portfolio of business with US clients had previously totalled as much as one billion francs.

It stressed at the time all insurance contracts had been reported under US anti-tax evasion laws that require reporting of assets owned by US citizens.