India is the second country in the world with largest deposits in Swiss banks. It is an irony that a country which is in a state of development and where more than 32 per cent of people are living below poverty line should be the second country in the world to have largest savings in Swiss banks. Since Switzerland is a neutral country, people are under the impression that the money they have stolen from their respective countries is safe in Swiss banks. Founded in 1912, Swiss Bank Association (SBA) with 333 institutional members and around 18,700 individual members, according to its website is the most powerful bank that regulated banking transactions in the country. Shedding its veil of banking secrecy, Switzerland has agreed to be part of the global convention on tax matters formulated by Paris-based policy advisory group Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Adoption of this convention means that those who want to deposit money in any Swiss bank shall have to produce a certificate from genuine and authorized home agency indicating that taxes accruing to the intended sum of depositing have been paid at home according to the norms prevalent in respective countries. This is one effective method of not allowing black money to be transferred to Swiss banks. Of late many countries were unhappy with the banking laws of Switzerland that maintained secrecy and did not care whether the money deposited was black tax paid or not. No doubt the new law will restrict flow of money into Swiss banks nevertheless conforming to international norms Switzerland has passed a good law and we hail it. This has double benefits for a country like ours. First the intended amount of deposit will have to be cleared for taxation and secondly the taxes thus received from immense deposits will be helpful in the development activity at home.
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