The Swiss bank UBS AG was summoned before the court in connection with the case of Bernard Madoff. This was done by the initiative of the bankruptcy trustee Irving Picard, liquidating Bernard L.Madoff Investment Securities LLC. There were already two lawsuits against UBS AG lost by French bank BNP Paribas SA, which tried to force the bank to release 2.5 mln euros ($3.1 mln) invested with two Madoff-linked funds.
Currently, the bankruptcy trustee seeks information about the accounts of the arrested manager at UBS, as well as information about UBS accounts held by several Madoff feeder funds (some of them registered in the British Virgin Islands), and banks. The representatives of the Swiss bank complied with the third-party lawsuit. The subpoena for documents to UBS was issued March 17, just some days after Madoff pleaded guilty. One of companies in the UBS subpoena is British Virgin Islands company Plaza Investments International Ltd.; according to its investor, the BVI entity placed money with Madoff company.
By the prosecutors’ information, $170 billion moved through Madoff’s company since the fraud began in the 1980s. So far, there are more than $1 billion of assets recovered by the NY lawyer Picard who is conducting thorough investigation to find assets.
Besides the liquidator’s subpoena, U.S. tax authorities are seeking the identities of 52,000 UBS customers – Americans who evaded paying taxes placing their money in Swiss accounts. UBS avoided U.S. prosecution by paying $780 mln in penalties, and also admitted that in 2000 – 2007 Swiss private bankers helped Americans evade U.S. taxes through offshore companies in the British Virgin Islands, Panama, HK and other jurisdictions.