Syria's Assets in Swiss Banks Have Dropped 39 Percent in Year, Report Indicates

AP ^ | AP-ES-06-21-05 1115EDT

[TheOtherOne]

Syria's Assets in Swiss Banks Have Dropped 39 Percent in Year, Report Indicates
The Associated Press
Published: Jun 21, 2005 BERN, Switzerland (AP) - Syrian assets held by Swiss banks dropped 5.5 billion Swiss francs ($4.3 billion) during the past year, according to statistics released Tuesday.

The 39 percent drop was unexplained, but it could reflect sanctions imposed in May 2004 by the United States, which accuses the Middle Eastern country of supporting terrorism and undermining efforts to stabilize Iraq.

The sanctions restrict the dealings U.S.-based banks can have with their Syrian counterparts. Major Swiss banks, which have extensive operations in the United States, may have heeded the sanctions.

Spokesmen for the largest banks, UBS AG and Credit Suisse Group, declined to comment.

The Syrian assets in 106 Swiss banks dropped by the end of last year to 8.6 billion francs from 14.1 billion francs at the end of 2003, according to the data from the Swiss National Bank.

The national bank report gave no reason for the decline. The lion's share of the Syrian assets in Switzerland previously were deposited in the two or three largest Swiss banks. At the end of 2003 they had Syrian assets worth 13.5 billion francs.

No figure for the big banks is given for the end of 2004, but national bank spokesman Werner Abegg said there had been statistical problems, and that it should not be assumed that the assets had dropped to zero.

But the U.S. Treasury Department put the state-owned Commercial Bank of Syria, the largest financial institution in the country, on its black list as a money-laundering center for terrorists and the former regime of Saddam Hussein.

AP-ES-06-21-05 1115EDT

[CzarNicky]

Hmmm wonder if they are using their seed corn to keep their terrorists afloat.

[ex-snook]

"The 39 percent drop was unexplained, "

How about they are joining China to buy up the USA.

[mtbopfuyn]

I'm sure it's very explainable. Terrorists cost.

[Americanexpat]

The people in Syria that can afford to have Swiss bank accounts (and probably support terrorism) see the hand writing on the wall. They are pulling their money out to keep their assets from being seized.