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1000s Of Political Figures Are Stashing Cash In Swiss Accounts, Foreign Ministry Admits
In spite of all the attention the nation has received in recent years, SCMP reports that thousands of so-called "politically exposed persons”, or PEPs - a category that includes heads of state and other top officials - hold Swiss bank accounts, a Swiss foreign ministry official said. But, perhaps not for much longer as Bern aims to finalize a law aimed at simplifying the process of freezing and unblocking such funds.
As The South China Morning Post reports,
Swiss authorities estimate that “there are thousands of PEPs [with accounts] in Switzerland, not hundreds,” Valentin Zellweger, who heads the ministry’s Directorate of International Law, told reporters on Monday.
Switzerland has repeatedly been embarrassed by revelations, splashed across front pages worldwide, of global political heavyweights hiding funds - sometimes embezzled from public coffers - in the Alpine nation’s famous banks.
But the country has not taken such scandals sitting down: it has been freezing suspicious assets for a quarter century.
By the end of this year, Bern aims to finalise a law aimed at simplifying the process of freezing and unblocking such funds.
In total, Switzerland has since 2003 returned a total of around US$1.8 billion embezzled by Ferdinand Marcos of the Philippines, the late Nigerian military dictator Sani Abacha, former Peruvian spy chief Vladimir Montesinos, Jean-Claude Duvalier of Haiti and others.
That is more than any other country has returned and represents a quarter of the US$4billion to US$5 billion in assets restituted globally, Swiss authorities said last year.
Swiss authorities are currently co-operating with a number of countries, among them Haiti, Egypt, Tunisia and Ukraine, to return stolen assets that have been frozen following changes in power, said Zellweger.
Specifically, they are working to return US$40 million to Tunisia, a “big slice” of the US$60 million stashed during the era of former leader Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali, he said.
But the killing of Egypt’s general prosecutor has slowed co-operation with Cairo on returning funds linked to former President Hosni Mubarak, he said.
The Swiss Office of the Attorney General has meanwhile opened a criminal proceeding against two executives and unknown persons from Malaysia’s troubled state investment fund for suspected corruption and money laundering.
Switzerland also recently seized around US$400 million in connection with a massive corruption probe targeting Brazil’s state oil company Petrobras.
Zellweger insisted Switzerland is trying to be “transparent” in its handling of the Petrobas scandal, which involves top executives accused of colluding with construction companies to inflate contracts and bribe politicians.
The Swiss opened their own inquiry into Petrobras in April last year, with authorities vowing to crack down on the large number of suspicious transactions believed to be linked to the case that had moved through the country’s banks.
Switzerland’s attorney general has said the suspected corrupt payments had passed through more than 30 Swiss banks.
This marks a hard blow to the Swiss banking sector, which for years has been striving to clean up its image and crack down hard on money laundering.
“We have to do better,” Zellweger acknowledged, stressing though that Switzerland was the only international banking hub that had provided information about Petrobas-linked transactions.
He said banks in other countries had handled much bigger sums linked to the corruption case, but that those countries were keeping mum.
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Are the elite turning on themselves?
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Just get GS to do it for you and your cool.....
And only one political figure is out there exposing the corrupt financial system and the federal reserve and the IRS.
I want to help get that message out there to the masses. That's why I make candles with silver coin prizes: https://www.etsy.com/shop/ScentSavers?ref=hdr_shop_menu and donate half of the sale price (now through September 7th) to Rand Paul's campaign!
I am supporting the moneybomb on September 7th to show the establishment that there is a strong proliberty, pro free market, anti-fed group that is growing in numbers!
End the Fed and alot of the corruption will end with it!
It's telling that the ones in the know are building bunkers, hiring private security, getting their wealth out of the US financial system. They know something is about to go down. Get ready while you can! Maybe that is why they are driving the price of the metals down, so they can accumulate more and have a bigger piece of the pie for whatever post-dollar system awaits.
This really shows you how stupid politicians are. If they were putting their money in gold held is private swiss faults then i would say "those mother fuckers"' but they are putting it in cash, I am happy for them.
ah yes....it's an interesting phenomenon. You know, in the long run, it is impossible to store wealth in FIAT. If it were possible, we would all be rich.
As for the Petrobas Exec's. funny. If I write a $5,000 check my check ends up on a watch list for potential crooks - kept by the FBI, US Treasury, ATF, etc forever. But somehow, $400,000,000 sort of went under the radar. LOL..
Petrobas Exec: Hello, I would like to open a savings account.
Swiss Bank Rep: Okay...and your initial deposit needs to be $100,000 for free checking.
Petrobas Exec: Okay, here's $400,000,000.
Swiss Bank Rep: No problem...would you like a debit card with that? Here...select your PIN on this keypad.
Trump will liquidate them.
Petrobas Exec: Where's my free chocolate?
China proved that large quantities of gold are hard to get. They have $1.2 trillion to play with but could only get 600 tons in 6 years. That is why the super rich have to settle for Balloon Dog Orange and various paintings.
Gold is far more fungible but if you want a lot of it...good luck.
At least we all know where it is and thankfully
to the current regime we now also have the legal
precedent means to go get it.
And they thought they were soooooo smart.
Bullish for BitCoin.
Oh, my God, did I say that out loud? Jeez, guys, I'm sorry. I don't know why I said that. It just... popped out. It'll never happen again. Promise.
Channeling Fonestar are we?
I plead temporary insanity.
And don't say that name or he'll be in here like a flash, stinking up the joint.
Note to other Dictators and world thugs. $400 million in gold could have been carried in 4 Ford F350 pickups...unless you like loading them down like I do...then, you could do it with three. OR...just a single small well built fifth wheel trailer.
Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice.....
In 100 years they'll unearth a Nazi train filled with USB thumb drives.
Hope they stush dollars, because it will become dust soon enough. Without extorted money, justice will be swift.
Where do you think all that "aid to Africa" goes?
AIDS to Africa seems to be pretty successful.
<----Politicians from the US stashed stolen loot in Swissyland Banks.
<----NO Politicians from the US stashed stolen loot in Swissyland Banks
<----Democrats more likely to have stashed stolen loot in Swissyland Banks than Republicans.
<----Republicans more likely to have stashed stolen loot in Swissyland Banks than Democrats.
Mysteriously no swiss bankers are being investigated or jailed for accepting this money.
Also, only $4billion globally? Why do I think that number is .00001% of the magnitude of graft?
Make serving in public office compulsory and random, just like jury duty. Political corruption will evaporate overnight.
It isn't like you need to know your ass from a hole in the ground to get the job to begin with...
the b'crats would love that...
What?!
He said banks in other countries had handled much bigger sums linked to the corruption case, but that those countries were keeping mum.
Couldn't be US or UK banks ...
or could it?
How about Bernie Madoff's money in Israel?
Is that a typo? Did he mean hundreds of thousands.. or tens of thousands?
So on Monday morning that wasn't the Plunge Protection Team "PPT" ? Don't tell me it was Vladimir Putin closing out of his short positions for a monster profit!!!
Slimy Swiss...No qualms with keeping their cut after snitching.
REPEAL FATCA
repeal govt
I wonder how much Hillary and Bill have there?
I (heard) the Clinton Foundation money and their speaking fees go direct deposit to Switzerland.
I bet there is a lot of Greek Politicians money in the Swiss banks..they stole a lot...
It is pretty obvious that the Swiss are enemies of the common people worldwide.
that's right - swiss bankers are all criminals - every fucking one
I tried a few years ago to rent a small vault in Switserland as a private person - just for testing. The answer was NO - forbidden for foreigners. Apparently, my ( suggested ) assets were not of the kind to open the doors for me there. Only BIG frauds are allowed to enter. While I was only trying to store legitimally ( and previously heavily taxed ) assets there. Worth less than 100k. Just telling.
The very best definition of "neutrality" I have ever read was written right here on Zerohedge by a commenter "hedgehog9999":
"You guys fight while we hold your wallets"
By the way, Suisse isn't even in the Top 3 money launderers any longer...
And REPEAL FATCA you assholes: it only "hurts" the "common people" trying to do legit business between US and Europe. Oh yes, they still exist.
May we please see the accounts of all American politicians, bureacrats and bankers, past and present?