Arrest Warrants Issued in France for 3 Former UBS Executives

By Noémie Bisserbe 

PARIS--French prosecutors have issued arrest warrants for three former UBS AG executives, as part of an ongoing probe into whether the Swiss bank helped wealthy French customers evade taxes.

The warrants against the three Swiss bankers were issued during the month of January, said the Paris prosecutor's office. A spokeswoman declined to provide additional details.

The deepening probe could be a blow for UBS, five years after the Swiss bank paid $780 million and turned over the names of about 4,500 U.S. taxpayers with secret accounts to avoid criminal charges in the U.S.

A spokesman for UBS declined to comment.

Judges are investigating whether UBS France facilitated a system under which bankers from the parent company in Switzerland were able to approach and sometimes encourage French clients to open Swiss bank accounts that allowed them to evade taxes. Under French law, only French-registered entities can recruit customers in France.

In June 2013, prosecutors pressed preliminary charges against UBS's French unit, alleging that the bank helped its parent company in Switzerland illegally recruit clients in France.

The following year, the probe was widened to include the bank's parent in Switzerland. In July, French prosecutors pressed preliminary charges against UBS regarding money laundering, and requested the bank make a payment of EUR1.1 billion by Sept. 30, to cover potential criminal charges.

UBS immediately filed an appeal, saying the amount was "unprecedented and unwarranted."

The Cour de Cassation, France's highest appeals court, rejected the bank's appeal in December, prompting the lender to take its case to the European Court of Human Rights.

Andrew Morse in Zurich contributed to this article.

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