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Empresas y finanzas

UBS says books 254 million euros against second quarter to settle one German tax probe


    ZURICH (Reuters) - UBS booked a 254 million euro ($341.25 million) charge in the second quarter mainly to settle claims it helped wealthy Germans to dodge taxes, the latest in a string of lawsuits that have targeted its private banking business.

    The Zurich-based lender's offices in Germany were searched last year as part of an investigation of 750 cases involving foundations, a probe sparked by a CD with details of UBS (UBSN.CH)clients that was purchased by the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW).

    UBS, which faces a separate probe in Germany and similar probes in Belgium and France, said it aims to have all of its German clients come clean by year-end, from more than 95 percent currently.

    The bank on Tuesday reported a quarterly net profit of 792 million Swiss francs ($101.74 million) from 690 million francs year-ago, when results were marred by a $885 million settlement with the U.S. housing regulator over the mis-selling of mortgage-backed bonds.

    The result beat expectations in an analyst poll conducted by Reuters, which averaged 774 million francs.

    ($1 = 0.7445 Euros)

    ($1 = 0.9043 Swiss Francs)

    (Reporting By Katharina Bart)