Sen. Levin Calls For UBS To Clean Up Or Shut Down Over Tax Evasion

**UPDATE**

The Wall Street Journal reports that UBS will close private-banking operations for U.S. clients:

A UBS AG executive told a U.S. Senate panel that the Swiss company will shutter its private-banking services that have served U.S. clients from Switzerland.

"That means UBS will no longer provide offshore banking or securities services to U.S. residents through our bank branches," said Mark Branson, chief financial officer of UBS Global Wealth Management and Business Banking.

Earlier today, ABC News reported that Senator Carl Levin was talking tough again on private banking and tax havens:

Federal regulators should consider revoking the US banking license of the giant Swiss Bank UBS because of its role in helping wealthy Americans evade billions of dollars in taxes, Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) told ABC News today.

"I don't think that any bank that goes to the extent that UBS has gone through to avoid doing what their agreements with the United States require them to do, should be allowed to continue to do business unless they clean up their act," Levin said.

Check out Senator Levin's blog today about the tax avoidance hearings on the Huffington Post

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Read more about Swiss banks and wealthy tax evasion:

::Super Rich Tax Cheats Outed By Bank Clerk
::Judge Tells Feds They Can Ask For Secret Swiss Banking Info
::Ex-UBS Banker Pleads Guilty, Will Help Feds
::Sen. Levin's 4/1/08 blog on tax cheats abroad