A former Bank Julius Baer official is weighing turning over data on suspected tax cheats to U.S. and Indian officials after the Swiss government declined to investigate his allegations.
Former Bank COO Rudolph Elmer, who has been sued by Julius Baer for allegedly leaking hundreds of the bank's documents suggesting a systemic laxity toward tax evasion and money laundering, said the Swiss laws allow institutions to hide their criminal support for white collar criminals.
Bank Julius Baers sued Wikileaks.org, claiming the organizations violated bank privacy laws by publishing hundreds of documents online that detail the private accounts of bank clients. The documents purportedly show evidence of money laundering and fraud through an offshore branch of the bank.
For a whistleblower program to be effective, employees have to believe that any action they take will produce results and that they will be protected from retaliation, experts say.