On Saturday, UBS responded to media reports indicating Credit Suisse (“CS”) is under the US Department of Justice scope for alleged violations of Western sanctions against Russia. The leading Swiss bank, which completed its Credit Suisse takeover in June 2023, said it was unaware of any such investigation.
UBS share trading stopped temporarily on 27th September after falling by nearly 8%. This occurred in the wake of a Bloomberg news report about a current US Department of Justice probe into the possibility that the financial institution failed to comply with sanctions and, in doing so, helped Russian clients side-step the sanctions. In light of these allegations, UBS said:
The recent reporting on an alleged probe by the US Department of Justice into sanctions-related compliance failures at Credit Suisse and UBS is inaccurate. We’re not aware of such a probe. UBS and CS have significantly and proactively reduced their Russia-related exposure.
According to a Reuters report, the institution declined further comment. Reuters further indicated that neither the US Department of Justice nor UBS responded to requests for comments last Wednesday when the allegations first surfaced.
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In July, the Swiss Bankers Association estimated that more than $200bn in Russian currency was hidden in Swiss financial institutions. A CNN report, however, detailed how Drew Sullivan, co-founder of the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, told the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe this estimate could be well below the actual figure.
