Swiss bank giant UBS is being investigated over money laundering and serious organised tax fraud in Belgium. A statement from prosecutors said: “The Swiss bank is suspected of having directly, and not via its Belgian subsidiary, approached Belgian clients to convince them to set up constructions aimed at evading taxes.” UBS said it would “defend […]

Authorities in Brussels have charged HSBC’s private banking arm, which is based in Switzerland, with helping wealthy Belgians to avoid taxes. Prosecutors allege that hundreds of clients – including diamond dealers in Antwerp – moved money to offshore tax havens with the help of the bank. They said it resulted in hundreds of millions of […]

1. With the Law of 30 July 2013, the Belgian government has introduced a new reporting obligation for individual resident founders and beneficiaries of legal arrangements. 2. The concept of “legal arrangement” covers (i) trusts, foundations and similar structures; and (ii) certain tax haven companies mentioned on a black list (to be determined by Royal […]