UBS Settles Dutch Tax Case for EUR 5 Million as Capital Rules Vote Looms in Bern
Published on 09/22/2026 at 21:40 | Editorial boerse-global.de
UBS has drawn a line under another piece of Credit Suisse's legal legacy, agreeing to pay Dutch prosecutors EUR 5 million to close a long-running investigation into assistance with tax evasion. The settlement, announced today, carries no admission of criminal guilt, and the Swiss bank reiterated its zero-tolerance stance on tax offences.
Dutch tax investigators had been examining events between 2005 and 2015, when the former Credit Suisse helped twelve wealthy Dutch clients file incorrect tax returns. Numbered accounts, aliases and intermediary corporate structures were among the methods used, according to the authorities. Prosecutors justified the relatively modest penalty by pointing to a low risk of repeat offences: Credit Suisse no longer exists as an independent institution and had already stopped offering the relevant services in the summer of 2014. They also cited comparable settlements reached in other countries.
For the Zurich-based group, the deal marks one more step in clearing up the complicated history of its acquired rival. Legal risks stemming from Credit Suisse's past business practices have consumed substantial management time since the emergency merger.
A Quarter of a Billion Reasons to Watch Bern
The legal resolution faded quickly into the background on the trading floor, where attention is fixed on Switzerland's capital debate. UBS shares fell 3.5% to EUR 42.97, having closed at EUR 44.54 on Monday. The stock has been under pressure all week, with a separate reading showing a 1.7% decline to EUR 43.79 during European trading.
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At the heart of the unease is tomorrow's vote in the Swiss Council of States, scheduled for Wednesday, 23 September 2026, on the future capital requirements facing the bank. In the wake of Credit Suisse's collapse, the Federal Council under Finance Minister Karin Keller-Sutter wants foreign subsidiaries to be fully backed by hard core capital at the parent level. The current ratio stands at 45%. Under the government's plan, UBS would have to build up roughly USD 20 billion in additional CET1 capital.
Ermotti Draws a Line at 90%
Group CEO Sergio Ermotti has pushed back hard. Speaking at a Bank of America financial conference, he dismissed a proposal circulating in Bern to apply a 90% hard core capital requirement to foreign holdings, calling it no genuine compromise with the government's position and warning it would durably weaken the international competitiveness of the Swiss financial centre. The bank made the same argument in a position paper on Monday evening, cautioning against drastic competitive disadvantages.
Management instead favours the model put forward by the Council of States' economic committee, WAK-S. That draft would fully back the foreign subsidiaries while allowing at least 50% hard core capital and up to 50% AT1 bonds. Swiss business associations including Economiesuisse have thrown their weight behind the proposal, fearing that overly strict rules would drive up financing costs across the wider economy.
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Mixed Signals on Third-Quarter Trading
Ermotti also offered a glimpse into current business at the conference. Wealth management and the transaction business are tracking better for the third quarter than in the same period a year earlier, though he tempered expectations: seasonal effects are slowing momentum, meaning the improvement is likely to come in weaker than last year's pace.
Investors now turn their eyes to Bern. Should the UBS-preferred 50/50 model fail to win a majority in the Council of States, the bank faces a drawn-out drag on its return on equity and less room for future share buybacks.
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