{"id":8191,"date":"2014-12-22T15:53:14","date_gmt":"2014-12-22T23:53:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=8191"},"modified":"2014-12-22T15:53:14","modified_gmt":"2014-12-22T23:53:14","slug":"israeli-bank-pay-270-million-helping-u-s-taxpayers-hide-assets-irs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=8191","title":{"rendered":"Israeli Bank to Pay $270 Million for Helping U.S. Taxpayers Hide Assets from IRS"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Tax<\/a>LOS ANGELES<\/strong> \u2013 A major Israeli international bank admitted to helping U.S. taxpayers hide assets in offshore bank accounts to avoid paying taxes, officials said Monday.<\/p>\n

Bank Leumi Group will pay the U.S. a total of $270 million after disclosing that more than 1,500 of these accounts were in Israel and elsewhere in the world, according to federal authorities.<\/p>\n

Of this total payment, officials said $157 million represents a penalty for U.S. taxpayer accounts held at Leumi Private Bank in Switzerland.<\/p>\n

Bank Leumi officials agreed to stop providing banking and investment services to U.S. taxpayer-held accounts.<\/p>\n

The U.S. Justice Department agreed to postpone the prosecution of\u00a0Bank Leumi Group, charging the bank with conspiracy to aid and assist in the preparation and presentation of false tax returns and other documents to the Internal Revenue Service.<\/p>\n

This unprecedented agreement marks the first time an Israeli bank has admitted to such criminal conduct which spanned over a 10-year period and included an array of services and products designed to keep U.S. taxpayer accounts concealed at Bank Leumi Group\u2019s locations in Israel, Switzerland, Luxembourg and the United States, officials \u00a0said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Bank Leumi Group recognized that the writing is on the wall for offshore banking, and cooperating with the government\u2019s investigation was the only way to proceed,\u201d said Deputy Attorney General James M. Cole.\u00a0 \u201cThis deferred prosecution agreement demonstrates both that the Justice Department will hold financial institutions accountable for their crimes, and that we will be fair in recognizing extraordinary cooperation.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The Bank Leumi Group\u2019s parent company is Bank Leumi le-Israel, B.M.\u00a0 Bank Leumi le-Israel is one of Israel\u2019s largest banks, with subsidiaries in seven countries and more than 13,000 employees.<\/p>\n

Other subsidiary banks entering into this prosecution agreement include:<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. The Bank Leumi le-Israel Trust Company Ltd., the oldest and largest of all bank trust companies in Israel<\/li>\n
  2. Leumi Private Bank S.A., a Switzerland-based subsidiary<\/li>\n
  3. Bank Leumi (Luxembourg) S.A., a Luxembourg-based subsidiary<\/li>\n
  4. Bank Leumi USA, a FDIC-insured, full-service commercial bank with offices in California, Florida, Illinois and New York.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n