Switzerland Caves to International Pressure Ends Banking Secrecy

Switzerland, known for its banking secrecy, ended that tradition on Tuesday by signing an international agreement to fight tax evasion.

This marks “the end of banking secrecy” in Switzerland, the head of tax issues at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, Pascal Saint-Amans, told AFP.

The signing of this agreement marks a shift in the global political landscape as even one of the most independent and virtually ironclad nations bows its knee to international pressure. Switzerland is one of more than 60 nations to unite in the fight against tax evasion.

OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurria said Switzerland’s adherence to the Multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters “sends a clear and strong signal that Switzerland is part of the community of states which consider international tax co-operation as a necessity.”