Switzerland to publish 1st list of unclaimed accounts in December

Having started making public the names of Indians and other foreigners with bank accounts that are under scanner, Switzerland will now publish in December a list of accounts that have remained unclaimed for 60 years.

This would be the first time that such a list would be made public by Switzerland, where banks have long been known for keeping top-secret all details of the account holders but the veil of secrecy has begun to come off in recent years.

The list would be published by the Swiss Banking Ombudsman after compiling information from all Switzerland-based banks about the long-dormant accounts in the name of foreigners including those from India, while giving their lawful beneficiaries an opportunity to submit a claim.

These would be accounts that have remained unclaimed since 1955 and the banks have failed to re-establish contact with the respective clients. However, these may not be necessarily the accounts with illicit wealth.

Speculation is rife there may be accounts belonging to some erstwhile kings, members of ruling families of the former princely states and other wealthy individuals from India, who could have opened Swiss bank accounts but did not transfer the ownership to their children or other persons.

However, Swiss authorities and banks are yet to make public any details about nationality of such account holders.

Without giving any specific figures or details, senior officials at some Swiss banks confirmed there are quite a few accounts belonging to Indian nationals and they could be made public along with the full list in December 2015.

Some such accounts include those where ownership has been under dispute as multiple beneficiaries from India, including those claiming to be descendants of erstwhile kings, put forth their claims but could not provide any supporting evidence.

According to Swiss Bankers Association (SBA), the apex body of all banks based in Switzerland, the details to be made public would include the last name, first name, date of birth, nationality and last known address of the account holder.

This would also apply to the dormant accounts belonging to companies and other legal persons – without first name or date of birth. In exceptional cases, if the available information is not sufficient to legitimise a claim, the bank can publish the account or savings book number known to the customer, SBA said.

However, the name of the bank and the value of the assets would not be made public in this list that would be published in December this year, it added.

The Swiss Banking Ombudsman said that a new banking law, which has come into force this year, has mandated that “assets over 500 Swiss franc that have been dormant for 50 years – that is 60 years after the last contact – have to be published.

“If, following this publication, no justified claims are reported, the assets must be liquidated and their net proceeds will be transferred to the Swiss Confederation.