Swiss banks are already seeing political fallout in the wake of the «Suisse Secrets» data leak. European Parliament’s largest party calls for review.
That didn’t take long.
After today's «Suisse Secrets» revelations, The European People’s Party (EPP) asked the European Commission to «re-evaluate Switzerland as a high-risk money-laundering country,» according to a «Reuters» (behind paywall) report.
The EPP which holds the most seats in the European Parliament called for a review following the leak of Credit Suisse client data, alleging ties to criminals including human rights abusers, sanctioned individuals and more.
Suisse Secrets' findings «point to massive shortcomings of Swiss Banks when it comes to the prevention of money laundering,» Markus Ferber, the EPP's economic affairs coordinator, told Reuters.
In a statement, Credit Suisse said it «strongly rejects the allegations and insinuations about the bank’s purported business practices.»
EU Blacklist
The result of an unfavorable review could lead to Switzerland being blacklisted by the EU as a risk.
There are currently 21 countries listed as a high-risk third country, and are defined as posing risks to the EU’s financial system. The list currently excludes Switzerland and all European countries.
