Bank Hapoalim to Pay $874 Million to Settle U.S. Tax Charges
- Israel’s top bank accused of helping to hide over $7.6 billion
- Deal is part of decade-long crackdown on offshore tax evasion
The Swiss national flag flies alongside the Geneva Canton flag on top of the Bank Hapoalim (BHI) offices in Geneva, Switzerland.
Photographer: Valentin FlauraudBank Hapoalim agreed to pay $874 million to settle U.S. charges that it conspired with American taxpayers to hide more than $7.6 billion in secret Swiss and Israeli accounts, federal prosecutors said, the second-biggest settlement in a decade-long crackdown on offshore tax evasion.
The Swiss unit of the bank, Israel’s largest, pleaded guilty to a fraud conspiracy, U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman in Manhattan said in a statement Thursday. The deal takes its place in a string of investigations that have swept up dozens of banks as well as the tax evaders themselves. In 2009, UBS AG paid $780 million to the U.S., admitting it helped thousands of Americans evade taxes. The biggest settlement was with Credit Suisse Group AG, which agreed to pay $2.6 billion in 2014.